The Buerglers

It's been a while, friends. Hi! Where did we leave off?  Ah yes, the roach .  He's still alive.  It's been over 10 days.  Though, he's slowing down and looking a little skinnier than when we first found him.  Maybe I'm making it up. I've started my new job with my friends lawn maintenance company.  Most of my time has been spent learning all the new (to me) software, moving the office to it's new locations, and just learning what the company does and offers.  Chris and I have had a great time working together so far.  I'm really enjoying learning new things.  Chris has already taught me a lot about great customer service. This weekend was my last retreat with middle school kids.  It was bittersweet. We had a spirit filled weekend full of lots of laughs, low ropes, rock wall, ultimate frisbee, prayer, and learning about Jesus. Our theme was "You Never Let Go" and we discussed three parables:  The Lost Sheep, The Lost Coin, ...

Eric and I have a little "roommate."  And I put that in quotes because, well, we didn't invite him.  He's been living in our dining room.  He eats nothing.  No complaining.  No snoring. In fact, he doesn't make a peep. Yes.  He's a roach living in one of our beer glasses.  Now, I debated about even posting this silliness, because who wants to have their apartment exposed as having roaches?  Ew.  Really, we're clean people. You just can't avoid them.  We live in an apartment. In the South.  Get over it.  I did. Eric found this little guy Sunday morning while we were eating breakfast.  He was just staring at us from his Sapporo glass on the dining room shelf.  I look up from my omelet to see that Eric is snickering.  Then I look over at our "roomie on the wall" and sure enough he is trying to escape. I thought for certain, he'd get out of there.  Up, up, up he walked.  And then.  ...

Yep. That's the best mustache ever.

What is the best book you've ever read?  I have a three that immediately come to mind.  Two because of the affect they've had on my life and one because of the literary content. Boundaries: When to Say Yes, When to Say No-To Take Control of Your Life (Inspirio/Zondervan Miniature Editions)  I have mentioned this book so many times on here.  Seriously though, it helped me grow from a wacky college kid immediately into a working professional.  It helped me change my relationship with my parents into a more adult one.  It help establish lines between work and home; work and family; family and home, etc  If you struggle with any type of relationship or time management, this is a must read.  The best part is that the author know that Christian women in particular have a hard time saying "no" so this book using scripture and Christian thought to help you say "yes" and mean it and say "no" when you need to or should. Blessed Are the Bored in Spi...

Last week I posted pictures of all the yummy food I made that week.  One of our readers, Sarah, asked for the recipe to the Egg Muffins... So eat your heart out! Adapted from the Primal Blue Print 6 eggs 1 red bell pepper - diced 1/4 pound cooked ground sausage or other cooked meat (drained) shredded cheese of choice (to taste) salt, pepper (to taste) Pre-heat oven to 350 Spray and line a 6 cup muffin tin. We suggest the foil liners as the paper ones disintegrated  Beat eggs in medium bowl Add diced bell peppers, cheese, and sausage Scoop into muffin tin until each one is almost full to the top Bake for 18-22 minutes.  A tester tooth pick will come out clean when they are cooked through Using this one egg per muffin ratio, the sky is the limit!  Add chopped or ground meats (real or soy) to your desires.  Add seasonal veggies for a variety.   We made these over the weekend and then reheated them in the microwave (about 25 seconds...

First of all, I can't even believe that not only is it Monday, but it's Monday afternoon. I feel like my head has been in some sort of cloud for about four days.  Must be allergy season. This weekend was simply fantastic (minus to foggy head).   Friday night Eric went to see a movie with his dad.  Don't ask me what is was, I can't keep track.  I went over to my cousin Hilary's to "sit" with her, eat pizza and watch a Say Yes to the Dress Netflix marathon.  Hilary recently had two rods fused to her spine as well as some ribs separated and organs shifted around.  Needless to say she had severe scoliosis.  It was fun to keep a fourteen year old company on a quiet Friday night.  Just what I needed.  I also taught her how to pray Christian Prayer, something she wanted to do for Lent.  Mature, right? Saturday is our sleep in day.  So glorious!   Eric spent the afternoon helping my brother move into his new house.  Alex bo...

Ah yes, my most favorite question that I am asked at dinner parties or even around the church where I work, "Is that a real job?"  Which is inevitably followed up with "And that is a full-time position?"  To which people pause in disbelief and then ask while shaking their head, "What exactly did you study in college to do that ?" Let's start with what I am currently doing, and then get to the juicy details that all my friends in real life are so anxious awaiting. Then. I was a full-time high school youth minister for three years.  I ran the 9th-12th grade youth group.  We met on Sundays for two hours, plus during the week for Bible Study.  I also met once a week with the adult volunteers to play the Sunday events and retreats or trips.  Took the kids on several retreats and trips a year. Yes, lots of work.  Lots of coffee.  But after three years we had two staff members resign and thus God called me to the challenge of taking on both of the...

We're only on Day Two of Lent and I am already seeing an improvement in my life.  As you recall, I gave up Facebook for Lent and instead of the minutes that add up to hours of time wasted each day by stalking checking up on the people in my life, I am attending morning Mass. Just in these two days I've already seen increased productivity and focus.  Like, actually got a ton of stuff done, and had meetings, AND worked our registration table for several hours.  It's like magic. I also love that I can leave at 4 or 4:30 and have put a whole day behind me without feeling guilty. I hope the rest of Lent goes well.  It's nice to be focused and balanced in ministry work, even just in two short days.

As part of our training for Disney, Katie, Rosemary and I did a little "Biggest Loser" challenge.  We all lost some weight, and some inches!  Rosemary won our three month competition.  With bathing suit season upon us, we agreed to do a second three-month round, and invited a few girlfriends to join! Thus being said, I am not participating in "Mardi Gras" or as it's often incorrectly translated to "Fat Tuesday" (it's really shrove tuesday, which means to be prepared for confession) (like I am one to talk about translations, this post's title is at the mercy of Google Translations, but I digress).  People are indulgent.  With our second week of weigh-ins tomorrow, I can't afford to be indulgent.  Every day is a day to make good choices, right? Here are a few things I made today.  Keep in mind, it is my day off from work.  I am not (that) insane. Today's lunch (invented today) Our meatless meal for Ash Wednesday (Weight Watch...

The story began back in the Fall when we decided to run the Disney Princess Half Marathon.  Serious measures weren't taken until after the November Thanksgiving 5k proved to be a challenge to complete.  By December we finalized the roster of which girls were going to actually participate in the training and the race. We enjoyed some casual runs, but with the holidays we didn't get too serious until January.  It was a few days after I got back from my vacation to Puerto Rico that I learned I had sprained my ankle .  A few days later Katie, Rosemary and Sarah ran the Resolution 5k . By February the training was in full force with the girls running 8, 9 and 10 mile long runs, and taking a break one weekend to run a 10k at the  Chattahoochee Nature Center .  Yes, when did our running lives begin to include 10ks as a training run break ?!?!  The girls killed it and I think it gave them the confidence they needed that they could, in fact,...

With Lent beginning on Wednesday several Catholic blogs I read are hosting meatless recipe swaps.  This is one of my favorites. Eric and I have only duplicated a few recipes since we've been married, but this is one of our go-to meals.  It's easy. It's fast. It's Oh So Good.  (Eric doesn't even like zucchini and he loves this dish?) Gnocchi with Zucchini Ribbons, Tomatoes and Parsley Brown Butter Serves 2-4 courtesy of Delish.com Ingredients: 1 pound fresh or frozen gnocchi 2 tablespoons butter 2 medium shallots (chopped) (optional) 1 pound zucchini (about 3 small) (very thinly sliced lengthwise) 1 pound cherry tomatoes (halved) 1/2 teaspoon salt 1/4 teaspoon grated nutmeg ground pepper to taste +/-  1/2  cups FRESH!! grated Parmesan Cheese +/-  1/2 cups fresh parsley Directions: Bring a large saucepan of water to a boil.  Cook gnocchi according to the package instructions.  Approx. 3-5 minutes. Drain. Meanwhile, melt butter in a...

Our new pastor has finally arrived.  He's slowly getting settled.  On Wednesday we had an all-staff meet-and-greet type meeting.  We introduced ourselves and had to give a few lines about our duties at the church.  I said, of course, that I've been working at Saint Brigid for six years. The next day I needed to ask the new pastor a quick question so I snuck into his office to get my answer.  Before he would even let me speak he laughed and asked, "Can I be blunt?" "Suuurreee," I answered with hesitation. "Exactly how old ARE you?" he asked and chuckled. "Well, sir, most of the families I minister to think I'm about 18-20, but I'm actually 28" "Dang! Congratulations. Whatever you do to look that young, keep doing it. You look fantastic for your age" And there you have it my friends... I am 28.  And my darling husband is, um, almost 27.  Yep. I robbed the cradle. "Looking for answers to questions...

I cannot even believe that Ash Wednesday is a week away.  Yesterday, The Georgia Bulletin wrote about the difficulties of kicking off Lent this year .  And so I started thinking... It still feels like we just put our Christmas decorations away.  Regardless, it's the time of year in Atlanta where the trees are starting to bloom, the air is starting to warm up, and Publix is starting the "grilling season" radio commercials. Yet, spiritually, I'm suffering a post-Advent let down, a little seasonable depression, and my annual questioning mindset of "why?" And, bam! Lent is here - finding me at a cross roads where a luscious spring meets a spiritual drought. When I look at the purpose of why the Church established Lent, it's to combat exactly my same dilemma.  I am not alone (but why do I always feel that way?).  And the Church uses three ways to give ourselves a little spiritual bootcamp: 1) Prayer 2) Fasting 3) Almsgiving. As a child...

All five of us princesses finished the half-marathon! I still cannot believe it.  I seriously thought that I'd make it 3-4 miles max, as that is the furthest I've been walking. But after walking around Orlando and Disney on Friday or Saturday, my ankle was feeling pretty good so my new goal for the race was to make it to mile 6 (a little less than half way) so I could run walk through the princess castle in the middle of the Magic Kingdom.  As soon as Amanda I made it through the castle, she looked at me and said, "let's go! let's do it!"  and we did! Lots more about the weekend, including a video montage that we've been working on for the last two months, will be coming soon.  I have a really busy week so it might be next week. Stay tuned....