Spicy Chinese Shrimp

My new favorite shrimp dish! I made this tonight and everyone liked it! I use Jasmine Rice, which (in my opinion) works best for Asian style dishes.

Spicy Chinese Shrimp: "Spicy Chinese Shrimp
Serve with rice a green salad.

Servings: 4‹ Back to Entrees

• 4 tablespoons water
• 2 tablespoons ketchup
• 1 tablespoon light soy sauce
• 2 teaspoons cornstarch
• 1 teaspoon honey
• 1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
• 1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
• 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
• 1/4 cup chopped green onions
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 12 ounces cooked deveined shrimp, tails removed

In a bowl, stir together water, ketchup, soy sauce, cornstarch, honey, crushed red pepper, and ground ginger. Set aside.

Heat oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Stir in green onions and garlic; cook 30 seconds. Stir in shrimp, and toss to coat with oil. Stir in sauce. Cook and stir until sauce bubbles and thickens
.
Per Serving: 142 Calories; 4g Fat (28.1% calories from fat); 1g Saturated Fat; 18g Protein; 6g Carbohydrate; trace Dietary Fiber; 166mg Cholesterol; 432mg Sodium. Exchanges: 0 Grain (Starch); 2 1/2 Lean Meat; 1/2 Vegetable; 1/2 Fat; 0 Other Carbohydrates.
Low Fat Recipes Furnished by LowFatLifestyle.com© - Copyright 2006"


June 28th 2010-
The moment God is figured out with nice neat lines and definitions, we are no longer dealing with God.
-Rob Bell (Velvet Elvis: Repainting the Christian Faith)

Laugh, Live, Love

So much has happened and so much time has passed since my last blog. We survived our first season of soccer with Brady. He really enjoyed it, so we’ll probably do it again. I know that they are going to have a Fall soccer season, so we’ll have to consider it. I got a small taste of how it feels to be a crazy screaming soccer mom. I tried very hard not to get caught up in it all, but it’s difficult. Soccer was great, so now we’re thinking of doing something new. There are a couple of people around town that offer piano & guitar lessons to children his age and Josh doesn’t seem to be opposed to at least letting him go a few times and see how he does with it. If he picks it up pretty well and enjoys himself, then it could definitely be worth the time and investment. I’m a true believer in music as a hobby. I think interest in music and the arts helps to make people more well rounded.

* My big guy throws in the ball

*Running through the "parent" tunnel

*Chasing the ball

*This is a traffic jam. And that ball is actually Braden's!

Of course, at the very end of May we took what will be our one and only vacation for the year and we headed out on a Thursday afternoon and started our little adventure to West Virginia to see Josh’s brother graduate from medical school. That night we stopped in North Knoxville and ate dinner and spent the night. The next day we left and finished our trip to Lewisburg, WV. We made it to our hotel in Beckley, WV, a small city 40 mins west of Lewisburg. We went to the dinner they were having at the West Virginia School of Osteopathic Medicine and met up with all the Moody family that was in attendance. Surprisingly all of Josh’s brothers & sisters made it, as well as a couple of nieces. We spent the rest of the weekend there in WV and after the graduation we just passed the time going to shops and such. It was really good. THEN we had to start the trip back.

*All the siblings

*Holding the 33rd Commencement program

*Family

*Uncle Nathan & his little buddy

Let me just say that while I think WV is a beautiful state, the drive is horrendous. Especially for someone like me who can not stand being in a car for hours. Of course we made it back to Knoxville by early afternoon and we decided to take the kids to the zoo. This was the first time any of us had gone to a zoo that wasn’t the Birmingham Zoo.
The next day we went to Hiwassee Outfitters and took a kayak trip down the river. Kendall & I were in one kayak; Josh & Braden were in the other one. It was so much fun! Both the kids had a lot of fun too. I wish I had a waterproof camera so I could have gotten pictures of this trip! Maybe next time I’ll buy one of the disposable ones.

*The Knoxville Zoo

*Kendall at the zoo

Now, last weekend was interesting as well. My friend, Holly Allred who runs The Photographers, Inc. took me & another friend, Bonnie, on a photography 101 tour through Birmingham. We went to several neat places for pics: Avondale Castle, Sloss Furnaces, Pepper Place Market & a random wall mural. I had a great time! I’ve got plenty of wonderful pics to share. Some include Holly’s little boy Ayden as our model.

* One of the best city views ever (Thanks to Bonnie for taking me there)

*Ayden at the really cool mural

*Avondale Castle

*Ayden at Avondale

*Fresh EVERYTHING at Pepper Place Market downtown

*The train at Sloss Furnaces

*Creepy tunnel

*cool looking gear

*View of Sloss

This weekend is something to look forward to as well. Me, Josh, Braden, Holly, Ayden & Bonnie will be going to Morgan Creek Vineyards in Harpersville for their Music & Fireworks event. It’s great for families, a nice atmosphere, good music & gorgeous fireworks. I’m so excited!

Easter Time!

We’re always so busy! I keep getting behind on my blog and letting everyone know what we’ve been up to. Right now we’re really busy with sports. Braden has soccer twice a week and we are trying to go see Kendall play softball once a week. Hopefully we’ll move closer to her soon so we can go watch more of her games, but for now one time a week is a whole lot of driving! Braden didn’t have a game this weekend because of Easter, but we have practice again on Tuesday of this week. And his second game is this Saturday. He’s doing really well and even spent some time practicing with his daddy this weekend. It was really sweet. And since I played softball so many years, Kendall had to practice with me. Ha! She’s got a decent throwing arm and even does pretty well catching the ball, she just needs more practice. I’m impressed so far, since this will be her first full season to play. And of course she looks too cute in her little softball uniform. I’m really enjoying this “sports mom” thing. It’s exhausting, but very rewarding. Now Braden wants to play football & basketball and Kendall has decided she wants to take dance. Ugh! (Brady's 1st soccer practice, w/buddy Ben)

(Ken getting ready to bat next)

(Here's Ken on 3rd base)

Of course, watching both of the kids play has reminded me of when I was younger playing sports. I remember all the parents getting excited and yelling at us all the time and I catch myself hollering too and I’m trying to stop myself. I’ve found that it’s just SO very easy to repeat the exact things your parents did, no matter how many times you SWORE you wouldn’t! It’s not always a bad thing, but I swear I can close my eyes and relive those moments in my head.
I’ve found that Easter has become a great time to focus on new things. And I’ve started a new great (so far) book called Velvet Elvis (Repainting the Christian Faith) by Rob Bell. Mr. Bell has such a fresh approach to our Christian faith and so far he’s really focused on changing our attitudes and re-establishing the Greatness of God in our mind. There is one thing that has really stuck out to me…he’s talking about Moses’ relationship with God and he said “Moses asks God for his name, and God replies ‘I am.’” Wow, it’s really simple…yet it says so much. He goes on to say “Perhaps this is God’s way of saying, ‘If your goal is to figure me out and totally understand me, it’s not going to happen. Even my name is more than you comprehend’” …Sorry, I know you didn’t sign on for a book review, but I felt it was really something I had to share.
Finally, about Easter. It was very nice. Braden got plenty of candy in his basket, but he was happiest about his movie Cars. He actually managed to watch it 2 or 3 times in one day! Kendall got a couple of new music CD’s and she seemed fairly pleased with her loot. We went to church and left straight from there and went to my Aunt Patsy’s for our Swafford get together. It was laid back and nice. As always it’s wonderful to spend time with my family. After we left there we made our way over to Josh’s parent’s house. After all our running around it was almost 7 p.m. before we made it back home.

Whew! I know it’s exhausting! And just think, I’ll be registering Braden for kindergarten at the end of this month. Time flies by so very fast…
**And if you don't already know, I've created a site just for pictures. So, if you've not already received an email from me about the site feel free to comment, call or email me and I'll give you a link and set you up as an authorized visitor! It's http://MoodyMemories.shutterfly.com You can view and order prints there and I highly recommend setting up your own site! Picture from Ken's pageant a couple of weeks ago.

And I run, and I run, and I run

The last two weeks have been so much fun! Two Saturday’s ago all of us ran in the Locust Fork First Baptist’s 5K Run. The run was benefiting the Girls Missions. Well, Josh actually ran…I jogged while towing Braden behind me in his red wagon. Ha! He loves it when we do 5K’s. I think he just enjoys the scenery and being pushed/pulled around. Josh finished the 3.1 miles run in 19 mins. He was 4th overall. I was proud! I was also ecstatic that I finished in 41 mins even though I was toting Braden behind me. We had fun, and I think we’re going to start making a habit of doing these runs. In fact, Josh ran another one this last Saturday, March 13th. This one was a 5K in Springville, called the Big Springs 5K. It benefited the Parks & Recreations of Springville. Josh actually WON this one! 1st place overall. He even has a medal! I’m always so impressed with him.

We also got to visit with some of Josh’s family all this weekend. His brother, Nathan, and wife, Lara, and their little girl, Claire, were in town this weekend. It’s always good to see them and spend time with them. Especially since we only get to see them once or twice a year.

Saturday was also an exciting day for Kendall. She had a pageant at school that afternoon. We went up there and watched her dance and strut her stuff on the stage. She did a good job and looked very pretty. She didn’t win, but she loves doing it, and we love watching her do her best. I’ve got a few pictures of her I’ll have to share them as I get them uploaded.

Time at the Park

We had such a great weekend! We really can't complain about spending a nice time on a cool, sunny afternoon as a family in Cullman at Sportman's Park. After church, we all bundled up and drove to Cullman for some quality outdoors time. If you've never been to Sportman's Park I would say that it's definitely worth the drive for a family outing. They've got a large playground, almost one mile walking/biking track around a lake with a bunch of ducks & geese. Braden especially loved the mini-golf course and the train ride! They also have a hiking/biking trail that goes through the woods. There are plenty of lovely spots for a picnic under the trees. Braden & Kendall rode their bikes and Josh and I walked with them. I can't tell you how nice it was to get out of the house and get to play with the kids! I'm so glad it's about to get warm again.

This weekend we'll be running a 5K at Locust Fork Baptist as a family, we'll also be getting pictures taken for Easter! Then Tuesday Braden has his very first soccer practice! I can't wait! Let the fun begin!