Foggy daze

I've been in a strange place this week.  Since finding out about my cousin's little girl, I can't stop thinking about all of them.  It's been like a haze that's constantly surrounding me.  I believe that with all the prayers going up for her, she can - and will - beat this thing. 

But it's a reminder.  No matter how healthy someone may seem, there's the possibility of hidden evils that could take them away from us without warning.  It's definitely opened my eyes - something I feel I didn't need, since I did receive a reminder of this less than two years ago with Jacqui's diagnosis.  But more than ever, I realize we have to live for today.  It's so easy to get caught up in making plans, stress, and worry, that sometimes focusing on the here and now and just really enjoying your life can get overshadowed.

To follow her story, send prayers, or make a donation to help her family with the upcoming expense, visit http://www.helpaddison.com/.

I am so thankful for all of my friends who are praying for little Addison, for my family - we are just one huge, loving support system who love Addison so much, for my health, for my husband and beautiful little girl, for everything that I have.  I'm looking forward to embracing every moment on this journey with all of you - and trying to think of something special to do with my girl today to kick it all off.

As far as my Bucket List goes, I've been making progress, although I've not been updating a lot.  I'm still trying new recipes each week - some have been great, some not so much.  I want to share with you my most recent find, though:

BEEF AND PEPPER STIR-FRY

Ingredients:

1 C quick-cooking brown rice
12 oz beef top round, thinly sliced
1tbsp + 1 tsp low sodium soy sauce
1 tsp sugar
2 tsp vegetable oil
3 peppers - red, yellow, and orange
2 cloves garlic minced
2 Tomatoes, seeded and sliced

Directions:

Cook brown rice according to package directions.  Combine beef, 1 tsp soy sauce, 1/2 tsp sugar, & black pepper in bowl.  Heat 1 tsp oil on med-high heat.  Add beef - cook without stirring 1-2 minutes & transfer to plate.  Add remaining oil, peppers, & garlic; stir-fry 4-5 minutes or until peppers crisp-tender.  Add tomatoes & remaining sugar.  Cook 3-4 minutes or until saucy, stirring.  Return beef to skillet.  Add black pepper & remaining soy sauce.  Cook 1 minute or until meat cooked through, serve over rice.

Verdict:

This is definitely a winner!  Jim doesn't like a lot of peppers, but he loved this.  I added just a slight amount of heat with some crushed red pepper flakes.  He doesn't like tomatoes at all, but they melt down to make the sauce and he didn't even notice.  I was disappointed when I tried to get the leftovers from the fridge and found out he had already eaten them - we will definitely be making this again!!!