girl gone wife

life and chicken

2015-05-20T18:08:00.001-07:00

hey there. Not going to waste words telling you about how busy life is which is why I haven't blogged in almost 2 months. But here's life in 5 little bullets just to keep you up to date:

1. Campers arrive at Windy Gap Sunday. SUMMER IS HERE YALL.

2. I've been weaving a lot. I love it but it sucks up all of my creative juices.

3. Marcel leaves in exactly a month tomorrow. Love him. We'll miss him.

4. Albus weight over 100 pounds now.

5. I'm growing my hair out. Because we've been talking about babies. Not right now. But I want to be a long-haired mommy so I'm growing my hair out.

Here's some good chicken I made:

maple dijon chicken

ingredients:

3 chicken breasts

1 cup dijon mustard

1/4 cup organic maple syrup (or whatever kinda syrup you wish)

a lotta lemon pepper

sprinkle of garlic salt

directions:

Throw it all in a big ziplock. Leave it in the fridge all day. Bake at 350 for 20-30 minutes depending on how big your chickens are. Add some more dijon and maple syrup to a pan and thicken it with some tapioca flour (or cornstarch or regular flour) if you're feelin fancy. You don't have to. But I did.

short and sweet. hopefully I'll write again soon

maple cranberry brussel sprouts

2015-04-01T18:03:00.005-07:00

It all started with my love of craisins. I love them. I love adding them to salads, granola, etc. But you can't find sugar free, or artificial sweetener free craisins ANYWHERE. So I made my own.

for the craisins:

frozen craisins (because you can't find them fresh this time of year)

1 cup coconut sugar

1/2 cup 100% maple syrup

Boil cranberries with 1/2 cup coconut sugar until most of them pop. Drain out the water and pop any that are unpopped. Mix with remaining coconut sugar and maple syrup and spread over a parchment paper covered sheet tray. Start a movie and bake in oven at 150 for 2-3 hours, stirring every 30 minutes until cranberries are dry and gummy.

I made a big batch of these to add to salads and stuff for the next couple weeks! Totally worth the time.

for the brussel sprouts:

brussel sprouts cut into thirds or fourths. Sautee in coconut or olive oil on medium-medium high heat with lemon pepper seasoning and a tablespoon of 100% maple syrup for 8-10 minutes, stirring frequently. Once brussels are soft, add your craisins.

Happy April Fools Day!

crockpot chicken avocado lime soup

2015-03-30T10:41:00.001-07:00

This soup has been a favorite of mine but I just tried it in the crockpot for the first time last week and I think I like it even better that way! Unfortunately, sugar is a listed ingredient on the chipotle peppers so it's not paleo or whole 30 but it's still very healthy! It's simple, cheap and very flavorful.

ingredients:

5 chicken breasts

1 quart chicken broth

2 chipotle peppers in abodo sauce + 1 tbl abodo sauce in the can *****

juice of 1 lemon or lime

lotsa lemon pepper seasoning

2 cans mild rotel (although Casey loves it when I use the habenaro rotel)

2 tbl minced garlic

optional toppings:

avocado

tortilla chips

rice

cilantro

*****Please note that this is two PEPPERS, not two CANS of peppers

Tip: I just put the rest of the can of peppers in a tuberware or ziplock and freeze it for the next time I make this soup. That way one can makes like 8 batches of soup!

instructions:

Throw all ingredients in your crockpot. No need to cut anything up. Set your crockpot on low and cook for at least 6 hours. Remove chicken and shred with two forks. It should fall apart pretty easily. Bowl up and add your toppings. Enjoy!

makes:

5-6 servings

that time Jesus spat my Young Life talk back in my face

2015-03-24T06:27:00.000-07:00

Tonight I gave a Young Life talk. I've given a lot of Young Life talks. I've gotten to the point where I'm decently comfortable with them. I still get nervous beforehand every time. But I've gotten comfortable with that nervousness and grown confident in the rewarding feeling afterwards.

But tonight was a little different. Tonight, as I started in with my story, the room didn't hone in. There was a lot of side conversations. That part was sort of normal. But then, as I made my transition to start talking about Jesus, to take the story from light hearted funnies to something a little deeper, those heads didn't turn back to me. They kept talking. They joked about what I was saying. They interrupted me. And not just 3 of them in the back corner. But half the room. Even people on the front row.

And I crumbled a little. I got off track. I forgot what I was talking about and started in a nervous ramble for a hot second. I pulled it together and got out what I meant to say. I said my ending lines and delivered the main point. But it was the first time I've ever given a talk where I walked away from the front of the room and could have cried instantly. I was so frazzled.

I felt disrespected, uncared for, unloved, overlooked. I felt like marching back into the room and telling those that had been so rude to not come back anymore, to stay at home if they were going to be so distracting.

But then...I remembered what I had just given a talk about.

I'd just told them a story about a time where this lady Mary broke open what would be the equivalent of a $40,000 bottle of perfume and poured it on Jesus's head and feet. Which is weird but stay with me. She gave him a gift, the most valuable possession she owned. And when people rebuked her about how she could have sold that and used the money for so many better things, Jesus stopped them. He told them that Mary had done a good thing, that her story would be told for generations to come because she understood what He was worth. He was worth giving everything to. Her best. Everything.

Her dignity, her pride, her life.

So 20 seconds after I gave this talk, Jesus gave it right back at me.

Is He worth it? Is He worth giving up your pride? Is He worth feeling embarrassed, getting frazzled, getting nervous and fumbling out words? Is that message worth telling? Do you still believe that that message holds the power of LIFE even when it's delivered to closed ears? Will you keep on sharing the story of Jesus even when the people you're telling it to don't give a crap? When the crowds stop cheering and the feedback turns negative, will you still stand in the truth that you were born for this? Made for this? Chosen for this?

Yes. A thousand times yes. I forget it, but yes, it's worth it.

And also, would you rather have a room full of people who already love and respect the stories you tell? No. Bring on the crazies, the unbridled, the wild, the lost.

On hearing this, Jesus said to them, "It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners."

twenty three

2015-03-23T13:19:00.005-07:00

A weekend with my mom is a good weekend indeed.

She's a beauty. And the picture of a servant. And naggy because she loves me. It took me a long to realize how she does everything, even the most annoying mom things, out of love.

We spent my birthday doing my favorite things: eating good food, shopping, exploring windy gap, eating a homecooked steak dinner, Settlers of Catan, drinking foo foo drinks and hanging out with a few friends. My birthday gets more fun every year!

This week's goals:

EXERCISE BEFORE WORK. Done and done on a Monday! My goal was to go at least once. Maybe I'll go for twice. All you need is 30 minutes if you go hard.
ACTUALLY EAT MY LUNCH I BROUGHT TO WORK. Don't live off of camp food. Don't be a loser.
MAKE GOOD USE OF MY COMMUTE TIME. No listening to Friends on Netflix on my way to work. Spend some time with Jesus.

What are your goals for the week?

writer's block

2015-03-18T12:52:00.003-07:00

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I haven't written anything because I have writer's block.

I haven't done any cool crafts because I've solely been weaving.

Dinner's have been very uncreative because it's baseball and girl's soccer and chase after YL kids season because they're so freaking busy and we're trying to keep up.

But I feel like I need to write something so I'll just write about how I can't figure out what to write about.

It's my birthday this Friday and my mom's coming in town tomorrow night. Perhaps I'll have somethign to write about after that. And maybe I'll find some time to copy down one of my novel sized journal entries for #freakoutfriday.

Good day.

#freakoutfriday part 3

2015-03-06T17:05:00.000-08:00

Hey! Remember me? That girl that writes this blog? Life has been weird lately. For starters, Casey and Marcel have been on a cruise (that I was obviously invited to but don't have the vacation time for) and I've been all on my lonesome this past week. That means nobody has been here to kick my butt out of bed when I get off of work and make me not be lazy. {So I've been lazy and unproductive} Coincidentally, the Lord has been walking me through some sadness the past few weeks. I haven't been sad about anything in particular. Just sad. Unmotivated. Lonely. With no obvious reason why. I've hit a break through this week though. You see, He's made me realize this past week that I'd been doing this whole "self sufficient" thing. With my dream job, my dream hubs, my fun foreign exchange kid and so many Jesus loving, interesting friends, I've been relying a lot on that and just a little on Jesus. And so, my heart grew sad without reason. My hope grew dimmer and my confidence shattered. And then BAM. He revealed in a moment that He's been leading me through a place where He is is so quiet so that I could see what I become without Him.

So I haven't been writing because I didn't know what to say. Maybe that's more than you wanted to read tonight.

Want to hear a little more of my silly thoughts from back in the day? Tonight's installment is a happier one. Casey and I had been dating for around 2 months. During that time, I broke up with him...and we stayed broken up for a whole 24 hours. You don't need to know why. Just remember that I was a mess at that point in life.

December 3, 2011 11:53 PM

Quite a bit has changed since I wrote last. I really wish I'd been documenting because I would have had alot to say the past couple weeks. I guess I'll just catch you up now, reader.

First off, I'm totally helplessly in love with Casey. Yea, shocker. I'm not really sure when it happened. It just kind of grew on me and before I knew it, the words just popped out of my lips one day. It was the night we got back together after breaking up for 24 hours. One might look at a 24 hour breakup and say I'm silly for doing so, but really, it needed to happen. We all know I'd been wanting to run since I first agreed to date one with Casey because I was scared and didn't want any more " complications" in my life. And we all know I typically have to learn the hard way. So I needed to break up with CAsey to satisfy that desire to run away. And I needed to break up with him to realize that's not what I wanted at all. And that CAsey wasn't someone to be scared of and that I didn't want to handle my problems like that. I wasn't going to let my current situation rob me of my joy. I wasn't going to just quit life and hide just because things are hard. I thought I wanted the easy way out, but I'm learning there really isn't one for me. I just have to choose which struggle to battle through. So the day after I broke things off, I battled this dilemma in my mind all day and ended up at his house after work, spilling my guts and telling him I'd learned my lesson. Side note: he was supposed to be in Austin that night, but ended up not going because he was so bummed. We went back and forth for a while but in the end we hugged it out and later that night, he dropped the L bomb. And it feels so good to be in love with him. I adore him. I want him to be the one. I wouldn't say I'm positive I'm going to marry him one day, but that doesn't mean I'm not rooting for him.

YL Mr. Christmas Tree pageant is this Monday and it's going to be great. I can't believe this semester is already over pretty much. I'm not really looking forward to going back to school {I'd stopped going to classes a few weeks into the semester...} in the spring but I need to at least take a class or two. I don't want to fell too far out of the swing of things. My heart still yearns to be back at Crooked Creek every day. I dream of it at least once a week and I'm seriously considering a way to move down there or at last to Colorado. Anyways I'm off to bed. I'll update more tomorrow.

______________________________________________________________

Remember that whole Colorado thing for next week. It gets good.

#freakoutfriday :: the part where I freaked out after our first date

2015-02-20T14:39:00.000-08:00

So continuing the series I started last week...here is what I wrote from our first date. After calling me on the 6th, he called me later that weekend to asking if going rock climbing that next Monday worked. Young Life had been cancelled so I was free. Notice this is two different entries. One was waiting for Casey to pick me up for our first date and one was me recapping it afterwards.

Take a look into 19-20 year old Ashton's mind. She's irrational, over-analytical, and very very sad. Her parents are split up but not divorced. Her stress level is making her sick. She throws up most mornings because there is so much acid in her system. Sometimes there's blood in there so the doctors are running all sorts of tests. Turns out it's just acid reflux. But she doesn't know it yet. Her sister is very sick too. Later, they would find out she has Systemic Rheumatoid Arthritis but it took a very long time for them to figure out what was wrong. She works a lot.

{I have copied this directly from my journal completely unedited. Words written in red are my commentary}

____________________________________________________________________

Date: October 10, 2011 7:43 PM

{waiting for Casey to pick me up}

I. AM. STINKING. NERVOUS.

I kind of hate this.

I kind of wish this wasn't even happening.

Because I'm scared.

I'm scared I might decide I really like him after this and he might not. And I almost feel guilty because the poor guy doesn't even know what he's getting into if this works out. NO ONE deserves to be dragged into my mess of a life. I hate this feeling of nervousness! I haven't been this nervous in a very long time. I think I might vomit.

{AND THEN in a moment of genius I decided to spend some time with Jesus}

8:00 PM

From Jesus Calling: Enjoying Peace in His Presence by Sarah Young: "Trust me enough to let things happen without striving to predict or control them...when you project yourself into the future, rehearsing what you will do or say, you are seeking to be self-sufficient: to be adequate without My help." Psalm 37:3-6, Phillipians 4:29

Seriously Jesus? Thank you. Thank for knowing me so well. I needed that and you knew it. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.

October 11, 2011 12:05 AM

Dear Ashton,

Your expectations are stupid. You should probably try not to have those anymore.

Love, Ashton

Date with Casey was GREAT. Conversation flowed well. We never had that awkwardly silent moment where I strived to think of something to say. Conversation wasnt too deep but it wasn't completely surface level at the same time -- which is a GOOD thing. I don't know why I assumed we would immediately go to topics I wasn't going to want to talk about. Maybe it's because that's how Summer Staff was. Deep conversations were had pretty much immediately upon arrival. Overall, it was a very successful date and I would definitely go on a second date with him. Here's a play-by-play:

He picked me up at 8:10 exactly -- gave me a hug (two-armed) and opened my car door (check). Drove to where he thought a burger place was but he couldn't find it so we decided on Jack-In-The-Box because we wanted somethign quick in order to guarantee us maximum climbing time. This might sound like a negative set back but I actually thought it was awesome. The fact that he chose rock climbing was enough to impress me that I didn't need a fancy restaurant. I was very comfortable around him the whole time. I never felt like I couldn't completely be myself with him and I never felt the need to impress him. We only climbed for like 30 minutes before we called it quits and sat down on some couches that were there and talked. Turns out rock climbing takes alot more endurance than I remember it taking. I think I'll defintely be sore tomorrow. Carrying a tray at work may be a little difficult. {I was a waitress at Pappadeaux at the time} Anywho, I'm not walking away fro mthis thinking he's going to be my husband {hahaha}, but I'd be lying if I said I wasn't interested in seeing him again. I think the fact that I'm feeling so casual about this is confirmation that this is okay to be doing. So many times with guys, I've gotten so excited so fact to where it's consumed me and well, none of those have worked out obviously. I'm excited to see where this ends up but I'm not anxious anymore and that's exactly where I think the Lord wants me. See that? I'm growing :)

End Time: 12:45 AM

__________________________________________________________________

Hilarious and sweet. I was such a mess! Thank God the years of dating are over. Also, I'm not quite sure why I feel it's neccessary to write the beginning and end times on my journal entries but it's kind of funny. I know I would have gotten home around 10 or 10:30 so this was a good 2 hours later. Rumor has it that Casey might just let you all into his journal next week...stay tuned!

#freakoutfriday :: the part where Hubs asked me on our first date

2015-02-13T17:07:00.001-08:00

I've had a brilliant idea.

I've been rereading my old diaries the past couple weeks and they're hilarious. Because I'm incredibly stupid. And dramatic. And I suffer from the plague of a mind gone mad in trying to see the future. And then I thought, if I am reading this and crying laughing, surely someone else will think it's kind of funny. And so I've decided to let you guys have a look in.

{I have copied this directly from my journal completely unedited. Words written in red are my commentary}

October 7, 2011 1:10 AM

I got asked out on a date tonight.

A date.

A real date.

A formal proposal.

Like the big kids do.

And I said yes.

And now I can't sleep.

It all started Wednesday night when I came home from work to find Stormye {my roommate} and her friend Casey waiting for me to watch one of me and Stormye's favorite shows, Revenge. I couldn't help but notice Casey glancing over at me quite a bit as soon as I entered the room. He asked me all sorts of questions about myself, but nothing too personal. From the way we sprung into conversation, you would have thought we had planned our encounter ahead of time, instead of him coming to actually see Stormye, and me just so happening to be her roommate. At some point, YL was brought up and we talked about how I got involved and how he would go about getting involved if he chose to. We then talked about how he was thinking of interning for a summer at one of the camps. Ummm what? Yea, crazy. So I then of course have to brag about the fact that I pretty much already have my spot as a kitchen intern {even though I totally didn't!} and went on and on about my amazing experience over the summer {being on Summer Staff at Crooked Creek}. Anywho, we really didn't end up paying very close attention to Revenge between us talking and Stormye playing fantasy draft hockey. He left around midnight and gave me a side hug and said he hoped to see me again. 45 minutes later, he requested to be my friend on FB which I giggled about. I had a really relaxing day today. slept in until 830, showered and went to school. Sat through chapel and had lunch with Kate and Phil (new guy leader) at the Taco Joint and then had NTS {New Testament Survey} at noon-230. Once I left school, I stopped and picked up a few things from Aldi's for dinner. I started to rewatch Revenge when Alex {my cousin} knocked on the door. He did homework and I made us dinner until he had to go up to the school for his football game. (He had to take his dinner to go) Then, I went to watch his game at 6 after doing a sink full of dishes with Stormye. Love her. I was going to stay through the JV game but felt awkward when no kids were there that I knew so I left soon after it started {YL leader fail}. No one even noticed.

When I got home, I talked with Kristin {another of my roommates} for a while while she made herself dinner and I made a snack since I'd had my dinner so early. We were starting to watch Revenge (for the THIRD time) when Stormye walked in and asked if she could give my # to a certain friend her hers who wanted to ask me on a date. Yep. I'm pretty sure my eyes popped out of my head from surprise. After I pause from my shock, a peep of a "yes" exited my lips and then my heart exploded. I almost regretted it immediately when Stormye started reading me the conversation they were having about when he should ask me, when I would be free to go on a date, what we would do on on such date (she didn't actually tell me that part) etc. Because once I said yes, it was really going to happen. He was really going to ask me. I would of course say yes. Because who actually asks people on dates anymore?And that would mean putting myself in a situation that has potential to actually turn into a relationship and that scares the crap out of me. Literally. I pooped 3 times before he called 45 minutes later {BAHAHAHAHAHA}. (Sorry for the TMI, reader). You're thinking, "Why would that scare you?" Because I don't know if I could handle it if I actually end up liking him and then he ends up deciding he doesn't like me. I don't know if I can handle anything else going wrong. And the poor guy doesn't even know what he's getting into. Surely, I'll have to tell him if this thing takes even the slightest turn towards something serious. So this next part is to you, Casey. If you really start thinking of seriously pursuing me, you should know: I am going through the hardest season of my life thus far and it's full of pain. My sister is really sick. I am too. I found out just less than 2 months ago that my picture perfect home I grew up in is officially split in two and my dad has a mistress he's in love with and I don't know what the heck to do about that. My mom is a basket case now a days. I am used goods with newly found trust issues and confidence issues. I am a ridiculously busy person trying to balance all of this. You will have to fight me tooth and nail if you really want to get involved with this mess through pursuing a relationship with me and for your sake, I almost wish you wouldn't. At the same time, I can't help but hope that you do. {Spoiler alert: I never actually delivered this oh-so-eloquent speech}

It's a crazy battle in my head right now between what I want and what I'm afraid to want. I need to pray. I need to offer this up.

Final time: 2:13 AM

SO DRAMATIC. Kinda sad. Mostly just really dramatic. And long-winded.

Stay tuned for next week's #freakoutfriday

Target inspired DIY minimalist copper figurine

2015-02-11T10:49:00.004-08:00

So I have this moment alot, where I'm walking through a store or looking at something in pinterest and think "I could make that instead of buying it". I get it from my mom. I've been eyeing this beautiful figurine for weeks and finally gathered the tools to make something like it. Of course, this figurine is not exactly the same but I feel you get the same simple, clean and pretty vibe from it. You can find all of these supplies at your local Lowe's or Home Depot

Here's what you need:

two 1/4" X 2' soft copper tubes

tube cutter

copper wire

copper wire cutter (I used the one on a multitool)

Take your tube cutter (here's how I learned to use it) and cut your pipe into these measurements:

three pieces 8"

two pieces 5"

one pieces 3"

Feed your copper wire through your cut pipe until you have the desired shape. Above, you can somewhat see the step by step process I did. It's not too complicated. In the end, I took some longer pieces and fed them through each binding point just to make it a little stronger.

Happy crafting!

a day of meal prepping

2015-01-29T09:47:00.001-08:00

The more busy I get in life, the more I've become aware of some emotional needs of mine. I need time alone. I need time to decompress. On Casey's days off, you'll rarely find him inside the house. He does well in his off time doing things outdoors or playing basketball at the gym for hours at a time. In my off days, I need at least one day a week to be in the house. Some of that time will be spent on the couch or in my bed doing NOTHING. I need that. I need time to not feel busy. One of my things I've become accustomed to as a way of therapy is cooking. I think I've always felt that way about it but have become more aware of what it does for my mind in becoming a wife and having someone else to cook with. I think one of the reasons my summer spent at Crooked Creek Ranch is so memorable is because I was cooking! It's such a comfort for so many reasons. It's mindless and instinctual to me. I rarely use measuring units and instead rely on taste. It's why I'm not a very good baker. I also just REALLY love good food and love the comfort of having good food available to me.

I've had alot of people asking about what I've done to help myself succeed in completing 3 rounds of whole 30, how I deal with the massive amount of cooking involved, etc. One of the most important things I've done is planning ahead! At the beginning of each week I use the "Numbers" app on my phone to create a spreadsheet of everything I will eat that week. Seriously, everything. The app has an already made template that even includes a blank grocery shopping list on the second page that makes it easy to flip back and forth and create my lists. The menu spreadsheet has slots for breakfast, lunch and dinner as well as 2 spots for snacks (though I usually try not to snack and just eat bigger meals).

Yesterday was a prep day for me and I made the following:

1 quart sized mason jar of cooked sweet potato hash (about 8 breakfasts worth)-- ready to be heated up
1 quart sized mason jar of caulirice (about 10 servings) -- it's not cooked but this will save me tons of time on dinners!
4 salads in mason jars -- this usually includes a shredded chicken breast on bottom (to keep the spinach from getting soggy) spinach, tomatoes or fruit such apples or berries, and some sort of nut
1 small mason jar of homemade salad dressing --that I'll pour into idividual tuboware as needed
1 GIANT batch of minestrone soup -- 2-3 servings in the fridge and the rest in the freezer for lunches
12 hard boiled eggs -- for snacks or to pair with meals for more protein
all vegetables for meals cut and cleaned and stored into zip locks -- huge time saver!
Aideli's chicken and apple sausage sliced for breakfast and divided into single servings into ziplocks
chicken cut into individual servings and put into a snack sized ziplock to be frozen -- this makes it so easy to pull to be thawed. I used to put 3 chicken breasts in a ziplock to be frozen since I usually cook for just the 3 of us but have found that it's even easier to just divide them individually for when more people come for dinner or for when Casey and I eat fish and just Marcel eats chicken (because he hates fish)

All of this prep took around 2 hours and gives me the ability to have a ready (or almost ready) to go breakfast and lunch every day so that I don't have to add time to my mornings in order to eat well. No need to be tempted to eat food at camp when I already have lunch made. Spending just a couple hours once a week doing all of this gives me the freedom to slow down when I get home from work and take my time making dinner and relaxing.

Casey has built our new bed frame and we're working on staining it now. We also bought supplies to make these copper wall sconces for above our bed so stay tuned for pictures of our bedroom transformation!

Happy cooking!

minimalist light fixture inspiration

2015-01-22T11:02:00.003-08:00

So until Casey lost his job in December, we were seriously looking into buying a house here in Asheville when our lease is up in May buuuuut with the other half of our income being a little uncertain we've decided to push off those plans and continue to rent for the next year. Which means I have the itch to change all sorts of things in our house since we're going to be there for a while longer. I think the first stop is going to be changing some lighting situations in our house. Our living room has no overhead lighting and I'd like to simplify our small bedroom to make it look a little less small. Hubs is also going to be building us a new bed frame/platform but it could be a while before that is done. And he's going to build us some simple nightstand tables. And did I mention buying him a table saw for Christmas was the best idea ever? I'm so excited! Here are a few things I've been playing around with and considering for our bedroom:

{1}

{2}

{3}

And to install in our living room:

{1}

{2}

{3}

{4}

All of these require minimal installation and would be easy to take down (since it's not our house) which I love!

IF YOU'VE MADE IT THIS FAR:

You'll need to know that I'm selling tons of stuff from my closet on instagram @ashtonzagerscloset and that if you use the hashtag #girlgonewife when claiming an item, I will give you 20% off! Go! Shop now!

this week's adventures

2015-01-21T11:05:00.003-08:00

This past Saturday, I went hiking with my friend Amy. Amy was at one point both Casey and my boss. She had a big hand in promoting Casey through the YMCA and also promoted me a few times as well. Needless to say, she has been a huge part our success here in Asheville. She even gave me a glowing recommendation for my job at Windy Gap even though that would mean losing me as an employee when she had invested and trusted so much in me. I loved hanging out with her because I was reminded of how well she loves her work and employees and how much I want to be like her in that way. She looks more like Jesus than most Christians I've met. And she's one of my best friends here!

Then later on on Saturday, Hubs took me on the cutest surprise date. He left a note as a clue to what we were doing (left picture) but I couldn't figure it out until we got there. He took me to the Pinball Museum in downtown Asheville and it was so much fun! I'd never actually been there before but we've walked past it countless times. Basically it's like a Chuck E Cheese for adults minus tokens and pizza but plus beer availability. It's awesome!

That's it. Just a little update on what's been going on. I promise to post again soon!

whole 30 cashew cheese stuffed bacon wrapped jalapenos

2015-01-14T07:44:00.000-08:00

Y'all...I struck whole 30 gold on Saturday.

This cashew "cheese" is creamy, filling and it totally tastes like cheese! I'm totally making these on Superbowl Sunday this year.

Ingredients:

2 cups cashews, soaked in water for 4-6 hours

3 heaping tablespoons nutritional yeast

1 teaspoon minced garlic

2 teaspoons garlic salt

3/4 cups of water, adjust as neccessary

12 fresh jalapenos, sliced in half and seeds removed

6 pieces of bacon, cut in half

So this cheese can be made in a food processor or a blender. I would have preferred to have had a food processer but had to use the blender that was at the house we stayed at because we forgot our food processor on this trip. It's important to have your cashews soaking in water until they are soft and swollen with water so that when you blend them, they turn into a paste instead of being grainy and dry. Throw contents into your food processor, holding back half of the water at first and pulse until it's nice and smooth. Add more water as necessary until you have a nice and thick paste. Taste and add more salt or nutritional yeast as necessary. The yeast is what's going to give you the cheesy taste. You may need to break this up into two batches, especially if you're using a blender. I then filled the pitted jalapeno halves and wrapped a half piece of bacon around each of them. It's hard to know how long they took in the oven because the oven we had at the house was really old. I had to set the oven at 450 and cooked them for 40 minutes to get them cooked all of the way. In a normal oven I would have set it to 350 and it would have probably taken 20 minutes.

Enjoy!

a weekend away

2015-01-11T15:47:00.000-08:00

This weekend, we spent the weekend at a "cabin" in Hot Springs, NC. We thought we rented a cabin...but when we got there it was actually a beautiful, spacious house out in the middle of nowhere! We had it all to ourselves and it was so peaceful to have nobody else around. It was quiet. I was dancing on my toes with excitement when the Moose's (Mooses, Meese? I'm not sure what to call them) pulled in, with baby Merritt packed nicely in the womb. I am already so in love with baby Merritt already! Casey and I thought for sure that Matt and Aly would decline our invitation to our weekend getaway seeing as Aly is 8 months pregnant, but nope. Turns out Aly is the coolest, most low maintenance prego lady I've ever met. #teamAly

We spent the weekend playing games, sharing life, eating great {whole30} food together and laughing. I didn't get out of my pajamas all day yesterday and it was glorious. I also drank 5 cups of coffee simply because I could sit and drink it before it went cold. We talked about babies and the fever is boiling y'all. But we will continue to wait! We missed Albus and Marcel a lot but it was nice to have some "adult" time.

It was so much fun to spend so much time with our closest friends who have walked with us through our marriage and to look at all of the stories and adventures and happiness the Lord has brought us through these four. We are truly blessed.

whole 30 chicken and sweet sausage kabobs with rosemary caulirice

2015-01-07T12:15:00.001-08:00

Ingredients:

2 chicken breasts, cut into bite sized pieces

2 Aidell's Chicken & Apple Sausage, sliced
1 bell pepper, cubed
1 zuccini, sliced
mushrooms, halved
1/2 cup apple cider vinegar
2-3 tablespoons coconut aminos
lemon pepper seasoning
garlic salt

1/4 head of cauliflower
1 tablespoon ghee (clarified butter)
rosemary

For this dish, I prepped my veggies for the kabobs as soon as I brought them home from the store. One of the most beneficial habits I've gotten in is to go ahead and clean and cut any veggies and meats as neccessary as soon as I get home from the store. This cuts out tons of time used later in the week when I need to make a meal fast. I was able to come home from work and skewer these immediately and coat them in my marinade for Casey to grill outside while I made the caulirice. Casey isn't a huge fan of cauli rice but I love it! He says it's just not fun to pretend to eat rice...I think it's quite fun. So anywho, I ran my uncooked cauliflower through my food processor, pulsing until it was pretty grainy. Then, I put it in a pan with some melted ghee and crushed rosemary and stirred it around on medium heat until the cauliflower started to soften. Be careful not to cook it too long though because it can get mushy if you do so.

Happy cooking!

5 things I learned in 2014

2015-01-04T15:28:00.000-08:00

5 things I learned in 2014:

About being a wife:
Trusting the Lord means trusting your husband. When the idea of inviting Marcel to come live with us FOR A FREAKING YEAR was presented to me by my dear husband, I thought he was insane. No way could I handle having someone else in my house, in my space, taking up my time, my precious private time for a whole year. No way could I trust myself to be in charge of someone else's life. But you know what I could trust? That my husband is a man rooted in the Bible. That he seeks the Lord's wisdom every single day. That he loves me sacrificially and never looks at life without taking me into consideration. And so when Casey said he thought it was a good idea, I let him make that decision for us. Sometimes trusting the Lord means trusting your husband.

About chasing your dreams:
Don't let anyone but Jesus tell you no. Give your whole self to the mission of pursuing your dreams. If it's your dream, you can't just get sad that it's not working out and find a new dream. I applied for a job at Windy Gap 4 times before they told me yes. Unqualified, undereducated, unexperienced as I was, I had faith that if I kept chasing hard enough, it had to work out. And it did.

About health:
That I am and will always be a food addict. But that skinny and healthy tastes better than that second helping of mashed potatoes. That a day without potato chips or Chick Fil A or bread leads to a night without interrupted sleep. And that leads to me having way more energy. And that sometimes means I'll actually get up that extra 30 minutes earlier to read my Bible. Which leads to me being a WAY more gracious and loving wife and fake mommy. But that living a healthy life, eating good food and exercising is a journey not so smooth at times...because I am a food addict.

About Young Life:
To be an interesting person, do interesting things. My friend Leslie said this to me a long time ago and it's rang true in my head every since. This mission of pursuing high school kids can be more than coffee dates and campaigners. Living life with Jesus is fun and exciting. Show them that. Show them what a life without fear of being weird or failing looks like.

About tragedy:
The Lord is bigger than it. Bigger than Gatsby dying. Bigger than my parents divorce. Bigger than Casey getting laid off the week before Christmas. He's louder than the Enemy that whispers lies through pain and brighter than the sun that seeps through the darkness. He is.

new year

2015-01-02T17:27:00.002-08:00

2014 was a sweet year, probably the best year of my life. Casey and I had our first full year married. We became fake parents, moved into our house and got Albus. I landed my dream job. We found some of the best friends. It was a good year.

Casey and I went hiking yesterday with our friend Kathleen as a great way to start our new year off right. This year we want to do more things outdoors so we thought it only appropriate to use the day to do just that. We talked a lot yesterday about our resolutions for this year and I'm so excited to start putting them into practice. Here's what we came up with:

Ashton:

lose 25 pounds

brush my teeth more...and start flossing

make our bed every day

read two books that aren't harry potter or the Bible

Casey:

lose 25 pounds

read even more than last year

exercise for fun

Us:

peak 3 mountains

go camping 6 times

stick to our budget

have more quiet time

What are some of your resolutions? I'd love to hear them. Now that the holidays are over I'll definitely be posting more frequently again! Oh, and did you know that Albus made himself an instagram? He's a pretty good follow @albusgatsthegreat

16 gifts for guys that aren't clothes

2014-12-13T09:11:00.000-08:00

Boys are hard when it comes to gift giving...I always struggle to find gifts for my dad, uncles, etc. way more than I do the women in my family. So to help, I've compiled a list of items approved by Casey and some other guys that are worth looking into! Christmas is just around the corner but it's not too late to snag one of these great gifts!

1. Wireless iPhone Boombox Speaker $40
2. REI Flash 18 Pack  ~~34.50 $~~26.93
3. For the man who loves a good shave $60
4. UGG man slippers  $109.95
5. Leatherman Wingman Multitool $34.95
6. For the guy who's into working out $39.95
7. The best thermos in the world $25.99
8. waterproof flashlight  $14
9. sexy man blankey $178
10. for the man who doesn't ever shave $45
11. for absolutely no reason $24.95
12. for the man who loves camping  $130
13. pocket rocket camping stove  $39.95
14. charge/sync portable cable $25
15. nike+ gps watch ~~199.95~~ $165.95
16. beer of the month subscription  $39/month

december visitors

2014-12-10T16:53:00.001-08:00

These two cuties have been at our house since Friday and left yesterday morning! It was so great to see Allen again and meet Mia. Allen was Casey's best man in our wedding and they lived together for 3 years in college. He was there when Casey and I first started dating so it's been a treat for him to visit us the two times he's come. We played a ridiculous amount of Settlers of Catan, laughed, played, reminisced and explored Asheville. We love Allen and Mia!

the best friendsgiving there ever was

2014-12-01T11:38:00.001-08:00

Yesterday Casey and I invited our Young Life kids over for a friendsgiving meal and it was so much fun! I bought a smallish turkey and asked the boys to bring leftover side dishes from their Thanksgiving and the girls to bring desserts. We were expecting to only have like 12 kids accept our invitation, thinking most of them would be out of town for the holiday. We were wrong! We ended up having 25 kids show up and had to have them bring fold up tables and chairs that spilled into our living room. Our little 1200 square foot home was bursting. It was incredible! Best idea we've ever had and it was so easy! This will for sure be one of our new traditions we do every year.

1 Thessalonians 2:8
We loved you so much that we were delighted to share with you not only the gospel of God but our lives as well, because you had become so dear to us.

turkey day 2014

2014-11-28T11:01:00.000-08:00

This year we spent Thanksgiving with our good friends Graham and Olivia. Olivia was a yearlong intern at Windy Gap last year but we met Graham first. We were placed in the same training group last fall when we were going through wrangler training to be able to run the ropes course on the weekends at WG. The Lord definitely knew what he was doing when he placed us in the same group! It's been so fun to walk with these two this past year while they were engaged and now we get to be married friends!

Yesterday morning, Casey and spent some time going back and forth talking about things we were thankful. It was amazing to look back on the last year and see all of the things the Lord has brought to us in just one year. At this same Thanksgiving last year, we were both part time in our jobs, we had a few friends and fewer deep relationships and Asheville still felt like a weird vacation that kept on going. Since then, Casey's been made full time at the Y, we moved into our house, and developed deep relationships with people who feel like family. We lost Gatsby, gained Marcel and I started my dream job at Windy Gap in the same week. We figured out this great juggling act of full time jobs, full time loving on high school kids, and full time being in charge of a teenager. Then, we had added another teenager/man to live with us. I've grown so much as a person and wife and watched Casey evolve into a man greater than one I could have cooked up in my dreams. The Lord has blessed us so much. I can't believe my life has turned into what it has.

Hope you all had a fantastic Thanksgiving!

xoxo

The Zagspersens

super food salad

2014-11-26T06:38:00.004-08:00

Tomorrow is Thanksgiving!!! Hooray for Thanksgiving food. This year, we'll be celebrating over a meal at our house with our good friends Graham and Olivia. Then Sunday, we're having our high school friends over for a potluck friendsgiving celebration! I made this salad a few weeks ago, but was thinking this may be a good addition to your Thanksgiving meal as a little lighter alternative to the normal starch-filled Thanksgiving sides. Or maybe you could replace the steak with leftover turkey for a little detox meal on Friday...

// ingredients //

spinach & baby kale

artichoke hearts

roasted brussel sprouts and sweet potato

1 avocado, diced

pine nuts

feta

steak

dressing :: 2:2:1 ratio of olive oil, apple cider vinegar and honey

Protein packed and full of super foods!

Hapy eating

Award Winning Caramel Pistachio Pretzel Fudge Squares...and a giveaway

2014-11-24T06:17:00.004-08:00

So every year, our Young Life area has a Thanksgiving celebration before everyone goes their seperate ways for the holiday. We fry turkeys, eat way too much, talk and celebrate the past year together. The Young Life leaders are given the job of bringing desserts and so Casey and I each make a dessert and make it a competition and it's so fun. Last year Casey's Buckeyes killed my lemon-blueberry pie so this year I was determined to learn and have a comeback and well...I won. So here's what I made:

\\ ingredients \\

24 oz dark chocolate chips

four 15 oz cans of sweetened condensed milk

1 cup caramel sauce

pretzels

1/2 cup crushed pistachios

1 cup graham cracker crumbs

1 stick butter, melted

// directions //

Heat dark chocolate chips and 3 cans sweetened condensed milk over medium heat, stirring until smooth. While this is melting, combine graham cracker crumbs, 1 cup of crushed pretzels and butter and spread evenly over the bottom of a greased 9X13 pyrex. In a seperate pot, heat your remaining can of sweetened condensed milk with your caramel sauce on medium heat, stirring occasionally. Pour your dark chocolate and condensed milk mixture next. Use a rubber spatula to spread evenly. Lay down a layer of pretzels. Pour your caramel mixture on top. Top with crushed pistashios. Refrigerate for at least 2-3 hours before cutting to ensure everything has solidified.

And now...in celebration of the opening of my Etsy shop, I'd like to raffle off a giveaway of some my favorite items! To enter, leave a comment below telling me your favorite Thanksgiving dessert! If your name is drawn, you will recieve the following items:

For more info about my etsy shop, visit https://www.etsy.com/shop/girlgonewifeshop

the point of carolinas

2014-11-18T08:04:00.002-08:00

What a privilege. It was incredible to look at this cabin of girls and see how much my relationships with them have grown in just 1 year. What a mission! What an amazing purpose I've been given by the Lord, to have the opportunity to walk through high school with these girls and love them and watch them grow and mess up and succeed and everything in between. As I lay my head down Saturday night I was overwhelmed at how much I love these girls and how much I feel honored to be able to hear their stories -- especially the parts of their stories that very few people know.

As Jesus sacrificed everything to be in relationship with us, he has called us to love others in this same way. He's given me eyes to see and a heart to love these girls whole heartedly, without strings or conditions.

1 Thessalonians 2: 7-8

We took you just as you were. We were never patronizing, never condescending, but we cared for you the way a mother cares for her children. We loved you dearly. Not content to just pass on the Message, we wanted to give you our hearts. And we did.