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“Go confidently in the direction of your dreams, live the life you’ve imagined.” -Thoreau
I’ve always told my kids to work hard, follow their dreams and most importantly; to be happy. Because let’s face it, life is short, way too short. I preached and I preached but there was one problem, I was not following my own advice. I was unhappy, it was very apparent. I was unhappy at work and that unhappiness carried to my home life. I wanted to pursue my dream of blogging full time but I was terrified to take that leap. I was not practicing what I preached.
Then I did it. Three months ago, I left my job of 14 years to follow those dreams. I have a Master’s degree in Biochemistry, worked in a research Neuroscience laboratory but it was not what I wanted to be doing. I wanted to blog full time, I wanted to travel, I wanted to be home to bond with my kids! So after much consideration, I did it!
Not a moment has gone by where I’ve regretted this decision. Since pursuing my dream, I’ve traveled to exotic locations with my family, I’ve been home every night to cook with my kids & put them to bed. I’ve even covered a press junket AT the White House! These big and small moments are what I want to pass down to my kids, and to share with others. I want to be a reflection of what they can achieve. I want to show them it is possible to work hard, follow your dreams and be successful in doing it!
Recently, I watched the movie Miracles From Heaven, a poignant story of love, faith, spirit and big and small miracles that happen to the Beam family. You will be moved! The Beams are a family from a small town in Texas whose daughter develops a rare intestinal disease. There is a scene (not a spoiler alert) where the entire Beam family swears off pizza because their sick daughter Annabelle could not eat it. Their youngest daughter has a hard time agreeing but comes around.
The scene made me laugh and cry. I could see my family trying to swear-off our Traditional Southern-Styled, Baked Macaroni and Cheese if one of us were sick. It would be a very hard call for most of my family. I watched the movie intently, as I identified with the drastic changes that sickness forced upon Mrs. Beam’s life. My sister has a son with a rare metabolic food digestion disorder so it hits close to home. My entire life has been lived in the close shadow of a first cousin with severe autism, so it again hit close to home. I mention these things because life is so precious, and time is more precious. It is so easy to squander our time. I am not preaching. I am talking about my own life that I believe reflects many others. I was just holding new born infants, and I blinked and now they are almost teenagers.
It can be sickness, career, self-interest, or a variety of other things that fill our time and lead us on a path of blinking our life and dreams away. Somehow, I received a big miracle that let me see that my job as a research scientist was taking me away from my life. I received a bigger miracle still in finding the courage to pursue my dream and leave that job. I have time now to “be” with my husband and children. We don’t just exist life together; we live it and celebrate it. Just like the Beam’s.
Right now when you buy Miracles From Heaven DVD, $1 of your purchase will be donated to the Children’s Miracle Network. It is also available on Blu-ray, DVD & Digital.
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Traditional Southern-Styled Baked Macaroni and Cheese
Ingredients
2 lbs Elbow Macaroni
2 cups Sharp Cheddar Cheese
2 cups Monterey Jack Cheese
2 lb Original Velveeta Cheese (cubed)
2 1/2 cups 2% Milk
2 sticks Butter
4 Eggs
Pepper
Directions
1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Cook macaroni according to the instructions on the box. Set aside.
2. In a large saucepan, slowly simmer the milk and Velveeta cheese. Cook until the cheese has melted.
3. Whisk eggs in a separate bowl and slowly add cheese sauce to the egg mixture. Continually whisk until all mixture is added.
4. Add half the macaroni to a baking dish, add 1 stick of (sliced) butter to the top and pepper to taste.
5. Add 1 cup of shredded sharp cheddar and 1 cup of Monterey cheese. Pour half the egg cheese sauce over the macaroni.
6. Repeat for the second layer. You may want to poke holes on top and slowly pour the egg/cheese sauce. This will avoid spillage.
7. Baked for 35 minutes or until cheese has browned.
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Thanksgiving Dinner Recipes for a Feast - The Best of Life
Wednesday 13th of December 2023
[…] Southern Style Mac and Cheese | Guide 4 Moms […]
Kim Young
Thursday 30th of November 2017
How many cups of dry macaroni is this? Thank you
Miranda
Monday 3rd of July 2017
I have made this several times for family get togethers, holidays, and special occasions. It has always turned out amazing and delicious! My only problem is that when I am melting the velveeta with the milk, I get brown chunks in the sauce, even when stirring constantly. Maybe my heat is up too high, but I always end up having to strain it before pouring into the dish. If you have tips on eliminating this issue, it would save me time. Thanks!
Jordann
Sunday 15th of January 2017
I really want to make this tomorrow. Can I make this without the eggs??
Kayla Teague
Thursday 24th of November 2016
Can I mix the pasta, cheese sauce, butter and shredded cheese in together in the baking dish rather than layering it?
Wendy Hernandez
Friday 23rd of December 2016
Did you end up doing this? Thinking of trying out it out for our Christmas dinner side dish (I made it at Thanksgiving and it was a hit with everyone, but I thought the cheese might have melted better had it not been layered -- but it could have been my pre-shredded cheese that I used, which is why I shredded mine fresh this time around).