One Day At A Time....

We went to the West Side Market this weekend and got lots of good food.... My favorite was the Citron Creme crepe.... yummy! I had been looking forward to that ever since I decided to go. I didn't care much about anything else... as long as I got my crepe. Then we went to the Cleveland Museum of Natural History . My parents hadn't been there before and I think they really liked it... till we all started getting hungry. $12 Adults $10 Students (with ID) Free for teachers (with ID) So, It cost $22 for the 4 of us to get in.  (Mom had to pay full price, I got a discount and Michelle and dad were free.) T-Rex and Triceratops I got a kick out of this picture...  Michelle taking a picture of the dinosaurs behind my dad.  Dad taking pictures of the big fish fossil behind Michelle. This guy's artwork that was on display is AMAZING!   I love this shirt! I would have...

Week 1: Stop eating candy for a week      Results: I only accidently slipped up once when I put a jaw breaker I have been working on for a few months in my mouth. I quickly realized what I did and licked off the spit and put it away for a later day. I have found that I do not crave sugar as much at the end of the week as I did at the beginning of the week. Week 2: Using the Lose It app for iOS, track what I eat for a week.      Results: Not too bad. I am realizing that my portions are really wonky. By tracking what I eat, I am able to more easily realize what all I am putting in my body, and how much of it. While I did not track what I ate this weekend, I tried to make healthier choices, eating fish instead of a burger. I did still allow myself some splurges Saturday as Michelle, my parents and I went to Cleveland for the day. Crepes, Avocado Egg Rolls and Cheesecake, while not the best choices in healthy eating, I have deemed them as sometim...

I have been reminded today that I can't and shouldn't compare myself to others. When I did my 5k today, I came in last out of my group (Brad and my mom/Toby both smoked me.) But I did better than last year, and that is how I choose to look at it. As a wise man/TV character once said: "Listen, it's too big a world to be in competition with everyone. The only person who I have to be better than is myself."~Col. Potter      I am a unique individual who has been blessed with gifts, talents and trials specifically designed to help me grow as an individual daughter of God as well as help others. I know He has a plan for me, knows and loves me perfectly and knows how best to help mould me into the person He wants me to become. While our paths may cross and sometimes even run parallel with another persons for a time, we are all here to help one another become the best version of ourselves. I have met several people in the past, especially members of my branch, who...

     So, what seems like 3 months ago, my friend Brad and I were talking about running. He was getting prepping to run a 5k back home in Pennsylvania. I was trying to get into running, but just couldn't force myself to get out and do it. I decided to sign up for a 5k thinking that would really force me to get out. Brad emailed me around the beginning of April about a 5k on the BGSU campus that would be happening about a week after my birthday and we both signed up (and my parents as well. There was a dog walk that my dad was happy to join.)      Well the last few weeks have given me plenty of excuses for not getting out and running. Between weather being completely moody, my work schedule with a school schedule and church activities squished together, I just didn't feel like running. I have had family and friends sick or not feeling well for weeks. Boy, I wish I had trained more....today was kinda rough.    ...

Tonight I am grateful for timing and people. I'm grateful that of all times to have an unexpected outdoor electrical fire at my parents house, it was still durring waking hours with people in view of the window, so it was caught quickly instead of when people were sleeping or out of view. We had just finished playing a game when I looked out the kitchen window to see sparks comming off the house. Then I realized that THERE WERE SPARKS COMING OFF THE HOUSE! After a brief panic of figuring out what was going on, and having the lights/power flicker and go out, we got everyone out of the house and called 911. Gratefully, we live in the city instead of the outskirts so the fire department was able to come quickly, taking care of the fire before it did any damage to the house. (Also, kudos to the neighbor who allowed us to use his electricaly rated fire extinguisher) The fire department assessed the situation, and informed us that Toledo Edison should be there in he next 1-2 hours to re...

A made up recipe by Julie Perry  1 lb mild ground sausage 3 small zucchini 1 4oz can sliced mushrooms (do not drain) 1 8oz can diced tomatoes with Italian seasoning (do not drain) ¼ c diced onion 1 ½ c water shredded cheese salt pepper Italian Ms. Dash Begin to cook sausage with the onion in a medium sized pot. Once sausage is cooked add in the can of tomatoes and can of mushrooms. Add 1½ cups of water to the pot with 1¼ cups of couscous. Bring mixture to a boil until the couscous is cooked and remaining liquid is boiled away. Cut the zucchini in half and scoop out the middle. Season the zucchini with the salt, pepper, and Italian Ms. Dash. Fill the zucchini with the sausage mixture and bake for 20-25 minutes at 400F or until fork tender. Top with shredded cheese for last 5 minutes of cooking time. Note: This makes much more stuffing than the 3 small zucchini can handle. Reuse leftover stuffing in almost anything!

Who? Myself, Jennie, Christina, Michelle Were? Ann Arbor, MI! Why? Because we felt like it! OH MY GOODNESS! This store smells SOOOO good! If you need a spice, they probably have it! After being in The Spice Merchant, we all were getting hungry. So we went to.... Customizeable dish of meat, starch, veggies, fruit, sauce, and seasoning? YES PLEASE! Although, from the looks of this next picture, I don't think Jennie got enough meat.... Today's foot picture brought to you by: Jennie, Christina, and the leftovers! As we were walking back to the car, Christina took the opportunity to take a picture that I really like (credit goes to Christina for this photo) Great way to spend a Saturday!

Well, classes start tonight. (5:45-9:45 pm). It's going to be a long day. (work 8-5, class 5:45-7:00, 15 minute break, class 7:15-9:45pm, drive home, pass out.) So, because nothing much is going on school wise right now, here's another installment of  Random JLP Q&A   Are you addicted to anything? Air. Definitely addicted to air. Just can’t get enough of it. (My name's Julie, and I'm an air-aholic.) Do you find excess piercings/tattoos attractive? Absolutely not. Can you lick your elbow? Nope. I think that this is impossible for about 99% of the population. Even still, knowing this, people still look like idiots trying! When you wake up, what's the first thought that runs through your head? Usually random song lyrics. This morning I woke up to a mash up of Lamb Chop’s Play-a-long theme song and the Irish Drinking Song from “Who’s Line Is It Anyways?” If you jumped out your bedroom window right now, how injured would you be? Depend...

1. WERE YOU NAMED AFTER ANYONE? I share a middle name with my mother. 2. WHEN WAS THE LAST TIME YOU CRIED? A couple weeks ago. It was a Sunday and I was in the process of having a musical fit. (Musical fit for me means playing the piano in the attempt to get my mind to work thru or temporarily relocate my complicated blender of feelings.) 3. DO YOU LIKE YOUR HANDWRITING? Yes and no. There are times I wish it was different, but as long as I can read it, I'm fine with it. 4. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE LUNCH MEAT? Pepper Turkey or Rosemary Ham. YUMMY! 5. DO YOU HAVE KIDS? Not yet. Gotta have a hubby first. 6. IF YOU WERE ANOTHER PERSON WOULD YOU BE FRIENDS WITH YOU? Probably. We'd enjoy a lot of the same things, so I think we would be friends. 7. DO YOU USE SARCASM ALOT? Sometimes. Depends on what mood I'm in. 8. DO YOU STILL HAVE YOUR TONSILS? Yupp. 9. WOULD YOU BUNGEE JUMP? HECK NO! 10. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE CEREAL? Currently either Lucky Charms or Lif...

So, bring on the daily blog posting! On Mondays, I hope to do a little update on the happenings of my family. Here we go! D ad is still working as a professor at Owens Community College and teaching webcourses at Tiffin University. M om works for the City of Perrysburg in the payroll department. She seams to really enjoy where she works. Mom and Dad also work as temple workers at the Columbus Temple on almost every 1st and 5th Saturdays. J ennie is getting ready to start her 2nd semester at UT, majoring in Art. She works in the admissions department for the Toledo Hospital C hristina is starting her 3rd semester at Owens, majoring in International Studies. She has been working at Starbucks for a few years now and is currently a supervisor there. As for me... I 'm still working full time at Thermeq Company. I am also getting ready to start my 4th semester at the University of Toledo, majoring as an Intervention Specialist (aka: Special Educati...