I don’t normally give details about myself on my blog because I like to focus on other things, but I have been getting emails lately asking me to talk a little bit more about me. 

Here are a few randoms:

1. Kristen from Goodie Goodie Gumdrops
2. Marc from Blog of the Pelerin
3. Mimi from Damn the Freshman 15
4. Jenny from Peanut Butter and Jenny

Mississippi Mud Cookies

I WANT TO EAT THESE FOR BREAKFAST!! (Image by Beth Dreiling Hontzas)

From Southern Living, August 2007 (click here for more info)

 Ingredients:

 1 cup semisweet chocolate morsels
1/2 cup butter, softened
1 cup sugar
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup chopped pecans
1/2 cup milk chocolate morsels
1 cup (plus 2 Tbsp. miniature marshmallows)

 Directions:

 1. Microwave semisweet chocolate morsels in a small microwave-safe glass bowl at HIGH 1 minute or until smooth, stirring every 30 seconds.
2. Beat butter and sugar at medium speed with an electric mixer until creamy; add eggs, 1 at a time, beating until blended after each addition. Beat in vanilla and melted chocolate.
3. Combine flour, baking powder, and salt; gradually add to chocolate mixture, beating until well blended. Stir in chopped pecans and 1/2 cup milk chocolate morsels.
4. Drop dough by heaping tablespoonfuls onto parchment paper-lined baking sheets. Press 3 marshmallows into each portion of dough.
5. Bake at 350° for 10 to 12 minutes or until set. Remove to wire racks.

…Because cookies baking in the oven will make almost everything better…

I’ve written posts before about the importance of doing things that make you happy and taking time to relax, but I feel like it’s such an important part of living a happy life that it merits more than just one or two posts.  By unveiling the happiest “you” possible, others will be happier and will love the care-free person you are able to become.

I am a worrier and a planner.  I always find myself trying to come up with new long-term financial goals and thinking about when and how I will be able to make my dreams come true.  I’m probably the only 24-year-old who is stressed about saving enough for retirement; I check my 401k balance a couple times a week and brainstorm ways to pay off our mortgage as fast as possible.  Weird, yes…but this can be a good thing if I play the game the smart way.  This type of thinking can be burdensome now but can cause me a lot of relief later (if I am able to retire without a mortgage payment).  While I’m aware of the importance of retirement and of saving and setting high goals for myself, I should make these things less of a “worry” in my mind and more of a “goal.”  Ultimately, my outlook is what will make a difference.

From now on– in my mind– when I think about planning for the future financially, I am going to be inspired by the money we can save if we pay the mortgage off early as opposed to stressed by the timeline or the manner in which I will have to get things “together” to make it all happen.  After all, it’s healthy to have goals but sometimes as life goes on you realize your goals have to be modified a little bit. There’s no harm in changing things later; I shouldn’t be disappointed in myself if these things become impossible.

If anything, I should be proud that I am able to have what I have now and enjoy it. I should take time to really appreciate the fact that I am able to have a house, able to save here and there for retirement, and be thankful that I care enough about my own future to sacrifice now for myself later. Who knows, I may be one of those people that spent decades thinking they will retire at a certain age and will end up bored at home and back at work a month later (*cough* Mom! *cough*). All I can do now is relax, take time for myself, avoid being careless, save a little bit of coin, and spend my days trying to realize my true potential. Everything else will fall into place.

…Because not EVERYTHING in life can be planned. Sometimes you just have to let go and let life happen the way it should…

This was my favorite movie growing up (thanks Dad for watching it 34,234 times!)

“Always be a first-rate version of yourself, instead of a second-rate version of somebody else.”

—Judy Garland

…Because you will be proud of yourself later if you don’t spend your life acting like someone else…

You know I'll have a few baked goodies for my Saturday brunch festivities...

Everyone that knows me is aware of my love of all things travel-related.  I love to visit big cities or small towns… and if I won the lottery, the first thing I would do (after a 6 month holding period to think things over) would be to take at least a month to travel and see more of the world.  Then, when I returned, I would get my finances in order and start investing!!

As much as I enjoy traveling, sometimes I enjoy sitting at home and relaxing all day.  Tomorrow morning I will be making brunch for my mom, step-dad, and husby… and will hopefully spend the morning relaxing and just sitting around with everyone doing nothing.  Maybe I’ll post one of the recipes soon

…Because a stress-free weekend makes for a stress-free life…

I have never cared a lot about what strangers have thought of me.  I consider this important because people will always judge you…so why waste time worrying about their opinions? 

While I’ve been good about this aspect of things, I have noticed that I’m not always good about taking opinions in stride when they come from people I care about.  This can be good and bad– but I have to work on having more confidence in every decision that I make (or in my opinions even if they aren’t easy to agree with).  I should always be proud of my decisions.  From that confidence will come support…and having supportive friends and family is what life is really all about.

When everything is said and done, your family and closest friends may not always agree with everything you say and do.  This is just a fact of life– I can’t be perfect and I can’t expect everyone to think my choices are perfect.  What really matters is that they accept me for who I am and love me for who I am.  The rest means nothing.

…Because your friends are the family that you get to choose…

The Best Banana Blueberry Bread Ever!

1/2 cup softened butter

1 cup sugar

1 cups ap flour

1 cup whole wheat flour

1 tsp salt

2 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp baking soda

2 eggs

4 large ripe bananas

1/3 cup buttermilk (or regular milk)

3/4 to 1 cup chopped walnuts

2 Tbsp vanilla extract (my friend Kristen got me the BEST Mexican vanilla that I used for this)

1 Tbsp cinnamon

1 cup blueberries (plus extra for garnish)

 Preheat oven to 350 degrees. 

Cream together butter and sugar.  Add eggs one at a time, mixing well in between each addition.

In a medium bowl whisk together flour, salt, baking powder and baking soda.

Add the dry ingredients to the butter mixture, alternating with the buttermilk.

Add bananas (smashed up), vanilla, and walnuts and stir until combined. Fold in blueberries.  DO NOT OVER-MIX.

Lightly grease TWO 8″ loaf pans.

Pour the batter into both pans evenly.  Sprinkle some blueberries in a row on top for a garnish (I use about 15 berries per loaf).

Bake for 40 minutes and set on a metal rack to cool completely.

Slice with a sharp knife and enjoy   Try not to eat the whole loaf in one sitting.

…Because bananas and blueberries are meant to be baked and shared with friends…

A classic scene...

Because today marks the 3 year anniversary of my step-brother Jimmy’s death, it will be a hard day for me. Days like this are never easy, but they teach me a lot. They teach me that nothing is predictable, you should never give up on people or yourself, and you should ALWAYS be thankful for the people that make your life worth living.

I am going to smile today and remember the fun times that I had with Jimmy; this way I honor him the way that he deserves to be honored. He wouldn’t want me to spend the day depressed and sad. I may even watch Top Gun tonight– one of his favorites (we quoted it all the time).

…Because sometimes “the pattern is full” and your favorite people can’t be with you for as long as you think they deserve to be…

This is what it's all about.

I love when situations or people surprise me– in good ways.  I’m not fond of times when people surprise me in bad ways or when people do things that I am shocked about or disappointed in… but I love when I am caught of guard by a good deed or a nice gesture.  For example, a friend of mine did me a favor right before I left my old job and went on to work at a new company– she wrote something for me that was better than I ever could have written and I could tell she put so much thought and time into making it unique and personal.  This meant a lot to me.  I’m not sure that she realizes how grateful I was/am for that, but I have thought about it quite a few times since.

I think that it’s so easy to get caught up in the monotony of everyday life that you sometimes need a surprise to wake up you again and remind you that life isn’t always predictable.  The beauty of life is that you never know where it will lead you.  Sometimes people that you thought you’d never see again end up playing starring roles in your life years later.  I hate to say it, but sometimes people that I have doubted at one time or another go on to surprise me and make me realize that I shouldn’t have doubted them.  This reminds me never to doubt people unless they give you a reason to do so…and to never sell yourself short.

The other day I got home to find a package waiting for me from my dad in Alabama.  Since he didn’t tell me he was going to be sending me something, I was excited to see what was in the box! 

Well, I opened it and saw that it was a hard-cover journal he found that I had given my grandma (Grammy) in 1998 for Christmas.  It was a gratitude journal with pages that were meant to be filled in by the recipient.  She certainly did a good job of adding detailed entries with little highlighted sections and scraps of paper when she had no more room.  She wrote down a lot of little things in her life that were going on… the people that came by to visit her, the things she did, what the calendar dates signified (like anniversaries or days she lost loved ones), the temperature outside, and even highlighted over the days that I called her next to a little smiley face she drew in (which was almost every single day).

I was so glad to get this book.  It is now one of the most special things I own– one of the things I would grab if there were a fire.  I love that my dad knew it would mean a lot to me and sent it, I love that he held on to it, and I love that he didn’t tell me he found it before he sent it.  Getting it in the mail made my day (maybe even made my week).  I was tempted to sit down and read the whole thing, but am forcing myself to read it slowly and enjoy the fact that the little things were enough to keep her completely happy…100% content with her beautiful, simple life.