meal plan & goals for the week of 7/14

Posted on July 14, 2013 by dallaswoodburn

Happy Sunday, friends! Just poppin’ in to share my meal plan and goals for the week!

I was super excited to cross off every single one of last week’s goals, woo-hoo!
– ~~write 2 chapters of my YA manuscript~~
– ~~complete the #yearofkindness challenge~~
– ~~prepare for my Summer Writing Camp~~
– read first 100 pages of 1984
– ~~volunteer at the Food Pantry~~
– ~~update my website~~ {you can check it out here: http://dallaswoodburnpr.com}

And here are my goals for this upcoming week:

goals for the week of 7/14
– finish YA manuscript first draft (!!!)
– complete the #yearofkindness challenge
– volunteer at the Food Pantry
– read & respond to all submissions in my queue for Sycamore Review
– take donations to Goodwill
– have a “sibling date”: go out to brunch with Greg

And here are some meals I’m looking forward to trying out this week:
– tilapia with pineapple salsa
– cilantro-lime quinoa with chicken
– this coconut green smoothie via Two Peas & Their Pod
– these quinoa breakfast bars via The Lean Green Bean
– these super easy gluten-free brownies via OrgJunkie

Now I’d love to hear from you! What are your goals for the week? What delicious recipes are on your menu plan?

This post is linked up with Menu-Plan Monday!

turning envy into gratitude

Posted on July 11, 2013 by dallaswoodburn

I’ve been thinking a lot lately about that green-eyed monster, jealousy. About how it’s easy to be there for people when they’re down. What’s harder is being happy when something great happens for somebody else.

Why is that? Why are we so inclined to compare ourselves to others? When someone else accomplishes something amazing, why does it have the potential to make us feel bad about ourselves?

Life isn’t a race. Life isn’t a checklist or a report card or a beauty contest. And when we’re constantly comparing ourselves to others, it leaves less mental energy to focus on all the good things happening in our own lives — and all the great things we want to do in the future! For me, nothing saps motivation quicker than that green-eyed monster does.

I’ve heard it said that envy can be a motivating factor, and maybe it is for some people. Maybe there is a good kind of envy: “You just did something amazing, and I want to do it, too!” That’s envy integrated with a nice dose of inspiration. When you don’t want to take away someone’s good fortune — you want to share in it.

That’s what I’ve been trying to focus on lately. Not just being surface-level happy for my friends when things go well — taking it a step further and truly basking in others’ happiness. Jumping up and down with excitement for them. Sharing the good news with everyone I meet. Feeling my heart swell with giddy joy.

Because you know what? When you celebrate the good news of others as if it is your own, it sort of does start to feel like it’s happening to you, too. The good feelings are yours. The celebration is yours. And the sense of accomplishment? That’s yours, too.

When you build others up, you build yourself up.

It’s also true in business. Here’s an article I read yesterday about the #1 secret to success in the workplace. Can you guess what it is? Making others successful.

Another thing about being happy for others is that happiness is contagious. And being joyful about the successes of others isn’t even limited to people you know. Being happy for strangers is an unbelievably freeing feeling. Once upon a time, whenever I used to read about an author getting an agent or book deal or selling a bajillion copies of her new book, I would feel jealous. I would think, “Why that person and not me?”

It’s one thing to be happy for my writer friends when they get a book deal {go Tera!}; or a story accepted to a phenomenal literary journal {I’m looking at you, Leigh!}; or are awarded a prestigious writing fellowship {woo-hoo, Jan Jan!} These are people I’ve been “in the trenches” with. We’ve read and commented on each other’s work, encouraged each other through the dry spells, sat together over coffee or fro-yo and commiserated over rejection letters. I know how hard they work. I know how much they deserve these good things.

But when good news happened to a writer I didn’t know? I was much more likely to let my heart slip into that jealous place. To feel like I didn’t get something because someone else got it instead.

But that type of thinking only breeds more bad thoughts and discouragement. A stranger to me is someone else’s Tera or Leigh or Janet. All of us are working hard. All of us are out there pursuing these big beautiful dreams of ours. I don’t like to think of the world as a pie with a limited number of pieces. When we’re happy for each other — even for people we’ve never met — the world begins to seem like a brighter, warmer, more inviting place. A place where good things happen.

When I celebrate a stranger’s publishing deal, it rejuvenates me. It makes me feel like maybe my good news is just around the corner. And it makes me feel fortunate and grateful for all the great things that have happened in my life so far.

I love this meditation from Heather at For the Love of Kale: “Gratitude turns what I have into enough. Thank you, Universe, for giving me everything I need. I am willing to see the light and love in this situation.”

You know one of the top things I feel grateful for? That I’m surrounded by people who genuinely care about me, who are there to pick me up when I feel down, and — perhaps even more importantly — who are unabashedly happy with me when good things happen. What a blessing. What a gift we can all give each other.

Now I’d love to hear your thoughts. How do you quash that green-eyed monster? Who are you celebrating today? Give them a shout out in the comments section so we can all send happy vibes their way!

gluten-free oatmeal chocolate-chip cookies

Posted on July 9, 2013 by dallaswoodburn

I have an easy recipe to share with you today — another winning gluten-free cookie!

– 1/4 cup butter
– 1/2 tsp baking soda
– 1/2 tsp baking powder
– 1/2 cup brown sugar
– 1/2 cup agave or maple syrup
– 3 cups gluten-free rolled oats
– 1 cup chocolate chips
– 2 eggs
– 1/2 cup chopped walnuts
– 1 tsp vanilla
– 1 cup peanut butter

for chocolate drizzle:
– 1/2 cup chocolate chips
– 2 tbsp butter

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees and line a cookie sheet with parchment paper.

2. In a large bowl, combine brown sugar, agave/maple syrup, and butter. Beat until creamy.

3. Add the eggs, vanilla, baking soda and baking powder and beat well.

4. Add peanut butter and mix.

5. Stir in oats, chocolate chips, and walnuts.

6. Drop by rounded tablespoons onto baking sheet and bake 10-12 minutes until lightly brown around edges.

7. To make chocolate drizzle: microwave chocolate chips and butter for 20 seconds. Stir until chocolate and butter and melted and well-combined, microwaving more if needed. {Be careful not to burn the chocolate!}

8. Once cookies are done, let them cool and then drizzle with melted chocolate.

Enjoy! I love these with a big glass of milk!

year of kindness challenge: week 27

Posted on July 8, 2013 by dallaswoodburn

Happy Monday, everyone! I hope you had a wonderful weekend. Did you do anything fun to celebrate the 4th of July?

Last week’s Kindness Challenge was to volunteer at a soup kitchen or food pantry. This was one of the most meaningful experiences I’ve had so far in my #yearofkindness endeavor. I spent a morning working at a local food pantry: stocking shelves, breaking down boxes, and helping to distribute food to clients. Everyone I encountered was so friendly and genuinely grateful. I will remember one woman in particular who was beyond excited to get a package of ground turkey. She was nearly jumping up and down with excitement. Many of the clients were women who came in with their children. This food pantry also distributed diapers, baby wipes and baby food.

The experience made me realize what a gift it is to be able to go to the store and choose what I want to eat. The clients who came to the food pantry were entirely dependent on what the donations had been that week and what was available. For example, this week the staples we gave out were red onions, yellow squash, corn, canned peaches, rice, instant potatoes, tomato sauce and grapefruit juice, as well as a selection of canned soups, crackers, boxed pasta dinners, and a limited number of perishables such as milk, yogurt, and lunchmeat. I was surprised how in-demand beans were, canned beans and dried beans. We ran out of beans quickly. In the future, I will always be donating beans to the food pantry!

I’ve decided to become a regular volunteer at the food pantry for the rest of the summer while I am home. I’ll be working there once a week. I feel really grateful and blessed to be able to help out my community in some small way!

The Week 27 Kindness Challenge is to send a card or care package to someone in the military. Here are some great links:
– http://www.give2thetroops.org/
– http://www.military-missions.org/care-packages/
– http://www.operationgratitude.com/tag/military-care-packages/

As always, blog about your experiences and include your links in the comments section below, or feel free to send me an email at dallaswoodburn <AT> gmail <DOT> com.

Have a wonderful week!
Dallas

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year of kindness archives:
– week 1 challenge: donate items to those in need
– week 2 challenge: leave quarters & note at laundry machine
– week 3 challenge: write & send a kind handwritten note
– week 4 challenge: give hot chocolate to someone outside in the cold
– week 5 challenge: do something kind for a neighbor
– week 6 challenge: deliver valentines to a nursing home
– week 7 challenge: donate to a food pantry
– week 8 challenge: donate toiletries to a shelter
– week 9 challenge: post a kind note in a public place
– week 10 challenge: do something kind for a child
– week 11 challenge: thank someone in a genuine & meaningful way
– week 12 challenge: deliver baked goods to a fire station
– week 13 challenge: give someone flowers
– week 14 challenge: donate books
– week 15 challenge: reach out and spend time with people
– week 16 challenge: smile at everyone you meet
– week 17 challenge: pick up litter/trash
– week 18 challenge: write a kind note to a mom figure in your life
– week 19 challenge: leave an extra-generous tip
– week 20 challenge: donate blood/join bone marrow registry
– week 21 challenge: visit a cemetery and pay respect
– week 22 challenge: practice a little patience
– week 23 challenge: call 3 loved ones on the phone
– week 24 challenge: do something kind for a senior citizen
– week 25 challenge: pay for someone’s public transportation

meal plan & goals for the week of 7/7

Posted on July 7, 2013 by dallaswoodburn

Happy Sunday, friends! How has your weekend been?

We’ve been enjoying beautiful sunshine and I’ve been soaking up time with my family. We went out for Happy Hour margaritas, rented some movies, grabbed fro yo, and went out to dinner to celebrate my dad’s “streakiversary”: 10 years of running at least 3 miles every.single.day! {You can read more about it on his website — so proud of you, Pops!} I also ran errands with my mom, organized a pile of random papers that has been chillin’ in my room for weeks, and read read read a ton! Lazy weekend reading is my favorite way to relax! 🙂

On Saturday morning we were thrilled to watch on TV as Mike & Bob Bryan won the Wimbledon Mens Doubles Title! If that isn’t exciting enough, the win also means they’ve secured a historic “Gold Slam”: all in a row they won the Gold Medal at the Olympics, the U.S. Open, the Australian Open, the French Open, and now Wimbledon. The Bryan Bros grew up in Camarillo and are dear friends of our family, and we could not be prouder of them! Not only are they world-class athletes, they are also amazingly kind and generous people. Congrats, Bros!!

I decided that I want to bring back my Sunday posts about goals + meal plans for the week … I kind of got away from doing them with the craziness of my thesis deadline, graduating from my Master’s program, and moving back home, and I was just thinking about how I miss doing these weekly goal posts. It’s a great way to gear up for the week and keep myself motivated.

So here are my goals for the week of 7/7:
– write 2 chapters of my YA manuscript
– complete the #yearofkindness challenge
– prepare for my Summer Writing Camp
– read first 100 pages of 1984
– volunteer at the Food Pantry
– update my website

And here are some recipes I’m planning to make this week:
– veggie pasta bake with spinach basil pesto
– turkey enchiladas
– gluten-free oatmeal cookies {recipe coming soon!}
– lemon bars for my Gramps

What are you goals for this week? What’s on your menu plan?

This post is linked up with Menu-Plan Monday!

happy 4th of july! + chocolate pb rice krispies treats

Posted on July 4, 2013 by dallaswoodburn

Happy 4th of July! I’m taking a few minutes today — as I try to every day, but especially today — to be grateful for all the men and women who have fought to establish and protect our nation’s independence. We are all so blessed to live in freedom. Every human being should have that blessing — in fact, it shouldn’t even be a blessing. It is a basic human right.

I’ll also be thinking today of the Four Freedoms Speech that FDR gave in 1941, and especially of the Norman Rockwell paintings that were published in the Saturday Evening Post in 1943. I was fortunate enough to see the original paintings a number of years ago with my Gramps and brother when a traveling exhibit came to town. I feel incredibly blessed to enjoy all of these freedoms. Clockwise from upper left: Freedom of Speech, Freedom of Worship, Freedom from Want, Freedom from Fear.

What are you doing today to celebrate the 4th of July? We’re going over to my aunt and uncle’s house for a backyard barbeque and pool party. I’m looking forward to a sunny day of relaxing with my family.

I signed up to bring dessert {no surprise there!} and I decided to bust out a new recipe that didn’t require me to turn on my oven. {It’s been so dang hot out!} I was inspired by this recipe on Money-Saving Mom for chocolate oatmeal no-bake bars. I love rice krispies treats, so I adapted the recipe to use mostly rice krispies. Here’s my take on it:

chocolate peanut butter rice krispies treats

– 1/4 cup coconut oil
– 1/4 cup maple syrup
– 1 cup peanut butter
– 2 cups mini marshmallows
– 1 cup chocolate chips
– 1 tsp vanilla extract
– 1 cup rolled oats
– 3 cups rice krispies

1. Grease a 9 x 13 glass pan and set aside.

2. In a big pot over medium-low heat, melt coconut oil, maple syrup, and peanut butter. Stir until melted and well-combined. {Be careful it doesn’t burn!}

3. Add vanilla and chocolate chips. Stir until chocolate is all melted.

4. Add marshmallows and stir until the marshmallows are melted.

5. Remove from heat. Add rolled oats and stir. Add rice krispies, one cup at a time, until well-combined.

6. Pour into the glass pan and refrigerate until chocolate has hardened and the bars have “set.”

Enjoy!!

If you liked this recipe, here are a few similar desserts that would be great to bring to a 4th of July party or potluck:

– rice krispies treats with mini M&Ms
– classic lemon bars
– patriotic fruit cobbler
– pb cup brownies
– red velvet crinkle cookies

wisdom from “abide with me” by elizabeth strout

Posted on July 3, 2013 by dallaswoodburn

This weekend, I read Abide with Me by Elizabeth Strout — what a beautifully written, poignant, luminous novel! I loved it. The main character, Tyler Caskey, is a minister in a small New England town in the 1950s, and the book explores what happens to him — and his congregation — in the wake of terrible loss. If you’re looking for a good summer read that will make you think, I’d highly recommend this book.

I wanted to share some quotes with you from the novel that really struck me:

“Oh, we are far less important than we thought we were, and we are far, far more important than we think we are. Do you imagine that the scientist and the poet are not united? Do you assume you can answer the question of who we are and why we are here by rational thought alone? It is your job, your honor, your birthright, to bear the burden of this mystery. And it is your job to ask, in every thought, word, and deed: How can love be served?” – pg. 268

“No one, to my knowledge, has figured out the secret to love. We love imperfectly, Tyler. We all do. Even Jesus wrestled with that. But I think — I think the ability to receive love is as important as the ability to give it. It’s one and the same, really.” – pg. 285

elizabeth strout

“I tell stories because life fascinates me, baffles me, intrigues me, awes me. And by writing about the world — the natural, human world — I experience these feelings in a way that makes me both joyous and sad, and that brings me face-to-face with what I believe lies behind the mystery of our existence. I can only hope that readers will not only be entertained by the stories I tell, but be moved to reckon with their own sense of mystery and awe. Through the telling of stories and the reading of stories, we have a chance to see something about ourselves and others that maybe we knew, but didn’t know we knew. We can wonder for a moment if, for all our separate histories, we are not more alike than different after all.” – pg. 299-300 (Author’s Note)

Have any of you read Abide with Me? What did you think?

What books have you read and loved lately?

guest post: banana monkey bread muffins

Posted on July 2, 2013 by dallaswoodburn

Today I’m excited to share a guest post from my foodie pen-pal Becca, blogger at BeeSweetSurrender. She always features amazingly delicious recipes, and I asked her if she would mind sharing a guest post recipe with us. Here is her drool-worthy recipe for banana monkey bread muffins! {You can see the original post on her blog here.}

banana monkey bread muffins

for the dough:
– 3 cups flour
– 3 tbsp sugar
– 1 tsp salt
– 1 package Red Star Active Dry Yeast
– 1/2 cup water
– 1/4 cup whole milk
– 2 and 1/2 tbsp unsalted butter
– 1 large egg
– 2 ripe bananas

cinnamon-sugar topping:
– 1/2 cup butter, melted
– 1 cup sugar
– 1 1/2 tbsp ground cinnamon (you can also use less if you aren’t that big on cinnamon)

vanilla glaze:
– 1 cup powdered sugar
– 2 tbsp milk
– 1/2 tsp vanilla extract

1. In a large bowl place 2 and 1/2 cups of flour, sugar, salt and yeast and mix together.

2. In the microwave melt together the water, milk and butter until the butter is melted and it is too hot to touch. Add this to the flour mixture and stir together. Add the egg and mix well. Lastly add the bananas– it will create a very wet dough. This is when you’ll need to add more flour, I needed the full 1/2 cup of flour. Your dough will be ready when it springs back from your touch and pulls away from the sides of the bowl. It will be slightly wet which is ok, but you don’t want it to be too sticky!

3. Flour a clean surface and turn out the dough, kneading well for a few minutes. Add flour by tablespoons if it is still too sticky. Lightly butter (or use a non-stick spray) a bowl and place the dough in, let rest for 10-20 minutes. Place cupcake liners into your cupcake tin.

4. In a medium sized bowl mix together the sugar and cinnamon. In another bowl melt the butter completely. Taking the dough, roll it into small balls, about 1/2- 1 inch in diameter. Dip the ball into your bowl of butter and then transfer it to the bowl with cinnamon sugar, and roll it around (we all like sugar right?!) so it’s well coated. Place 3-5 in each liner until the dough is all used up. I purposefully made only 12 but depending on how large you would like your muffins you could make 12-18. Set aside for 30-45 minutes to let the dough rise a bit more.

5. Preheat the oven while the muffins are rising to 400. Bake for 20-23 minutes and let cool. While they are cooling make the icing. Remove the muffins from the tins and pour the icing generously on each and… Enjoy!

Thanks so much for sharing this recipe with us, Becca!

Check out Becca’s blog at http://beesweetsurrender.wordpress.com/

This post is also linked up to Menu-Plan Monday!

year of kindness challenge: week 26

Posted on July 1, 2013 by dallaswoodburn

Happy Monday! This week marks the half-way point for our Year of Kindness Challenge! Can you believe it?? How is the challenge progressing for you? Any neat stories or insights? I’d love to hear your thoughts in the comments section!

This past week, my entire family was filled with immense gratitude and awe over the kindness of our friends, family, and strangers — my dad’s Kickstarter project to fund the publication of his new book Wooden & Me reached its full funding goal!! Thanks to all of you for your encouraging words and support. I could not be more proud or thrilled for my pops! The book is now scheduled to be released later this summer. More info is available on my dad’s website. He was also a guest last week on the TV show Sports Central! Here’s a photo my brother snapped of him with the two hosts, Kristine Leahy and Gary Miller:

So cool! The project was a blessing in so many ways and reminded me again and again of how fortunate we are to share this world with such big-hearted, thoughtful people. We were astounded by how many people reached out to my dad and our family with amazing kindness and generosity.

This week I also came across this post by my blogger friend Heather at For The Love of Kale, titled Kindness is Love in Action! I loved this post and I think you will, too: http://fortheloveofkale.com/2013/06/kindness-is-love-in-action/

Last week’s Kindness Challenge came from my lovely blogger friend Ashley at A Happy Lass {if you haven’t checked out her blog, you should hop on over!} and it was to do something kind for people riding public transportation. I left bus tokens at my city’s big public transport center, and I also put change in parking meters. Hopefully it brightened a few people’s days!

The Week 26 Kindness Challenge is to volunteer at a soup kitchen or food pantry.

As always, blog about your experiences and include your links in the comments section below, or feel free to send me an email at dallaswoodburn <AT> gmail <DOT> com.

Have a wonderful week!
Dallas

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weekend fun {+ trying to stay cool!}

Posted on June 30, 2013 by dallaswoodburn

Happy Sunday, friends! Hope you are having a joyful, relaxing, rejuvenating day!

It has been H-O-T here in Southern California, and especially in my little beach community where few of us have air conditioning, this weekend has been all about trying to keep cool! I have been downing Gatorade, homemade iced tea, and smoothies.

As I mentioned the other day, I have been all about the smoothies lately! I am a little late to the smoothie party, and I don’t know why it took me so long. I think I was intimidated by the blender {and blender clean-up} but it really takes me all of five minutes to assemble my smoothie, blend it, and wash the blender. A smoothie has become my go-to breakfast! I normally blend some fresh or frozen fruit, a couple spoonfuls of greek yogurt, 1/2 cup of coconut water, a handful of baby spinach, and ice. Here are a few of my favorite fruit combos:

– strawberries, banana, pineapple
– peach, strawberries, blueberries
– mango, peach, blueberries
– raspberries, strawberries, banana, blueberries

Also, if anyone is like me and feels a little wary about adding spinach, trust me: you really can’t taste it! It’s a great way to get a little more green into your diet.

On a more decadent note, I also made these chocolate butter cups which are currently chilling in the freezer … I will let you know how they turn out!

me beachin

Yesterday I spent the afternoon at the beach with my dear friend Patty and her family, who were sweet enough to invite me out to their beach house. It was a beautiful day at the beach and the nice ocean breeze cooled things off a little!

Then, last night my mom and I kept cool in the air conditioning: we went to a local restaurant and saw my amazing friend Lauren Sexton in concert! She is such a talented songwriter, singer and guitar player. She just released an album and the concert was a celebration. You can check out her music on her Facebook page — two of my favorites are her songs “In the Morning” and “The Highway.” Her music is beautiful and I was so proud to be there last night! Congrats, Lauren!

This morning began with a smoothie, the Sunday comics, a slobbery doggy kiss from Murray, and a beautiful sermon at church. Today’s sermon was about delighting in the abundance and joy of the summer and taking time to relax and recharge your batteries. After I got home, I’ve spent the rest of the afternoon sprawled out on the couch reading a great book — Abide With Me by Elizabeth Strout. {I love her! Her novel Olive Kitteridge is another great read!}

As I’ve written about before, sometimes I feel this pressure to be go-go-go all the time, like constant busyness makes my days more worthwhile, but I’ve found it’s really quite the opposite. On those rushed, forced go-go-go days I typically climb into bed feeling depleted and frazzled, like my gas tank is on empty. Not a good feeling. I’m learning to give myself permission, especially on Sundays, to just relax and savor this amazing life I’ve been blessed with. There was nothing I felt more like doing today and curling up with a book, and it has been a delightful Sunday.

What are you doing to relax and recharge your batteries? What are you delighting in this summer?