Keep calm and carry on

Dear Meagan,

Hey there girlfriend, so I know sometimes with memory issues it's hard for you to trust others and what they are saying.  And while you are on your road to recovery and your memory improves every day, we still got a little bit to go until your memory is fully restored. So in the meantime, make sure to keep writing down the important things and trust your family!

Sometimes we all have good days and sometimes we all have bad days. The important thing is being able to shake it off, give yourself a pep talk and keep moving forward... aka keep calm and carry on ;) Right now your main focus is physical therapy and building that memory back up, and you are doing great!

Keep trucking away and keep calm (& carry on) when you are having a memory issue. If your ever scared just pray that God will keep you safe and take the situation out of your hands. It will be SUCH a relief. I know you've had a tougher week so I plan on coming to see you this weekend (probably Saturday) so we can get your mind off everything and just enjoy some sista sista time!

I love you Meagan Ann! Remember all the progress you have made and never forget how proud of you I am. You are such a good example to everyone you meet and such an inspiration as well. You have big shoes to fill and no one could fill them as well as you!

XOXO,

Brooke

I'll ALWAYS be here for you!

Dear Meagan,

So I have to be honest I was not expecting you to call last night so late, but I am sooooo glad that you did! I just want you to know that I will ALWAYS be here for you! Never hesistate to call me if you need something, I will always be honest and straight forward with you and help you through whatever it may be that you are going through :)

I can't believe I have such a fighter for a sister and I'm so proud of the progress that you have made.  I know this will sound strange and I know you still have 'bad' days, but your 'bad' days are so much better. I don't know if you can realize that or not but you when you are having a 'bad' day you still know deep down that everything is fine and you will listen to me and be OK :) It didn't always used to be like that!

So I'm VERY proud of you and thank you for calling me. I also want you to know that the life (church) group that Jeff and I are in are ALL praying for you this week so expect some good things to come your way. Everyone around you is so excited for the changes and the steps that you are taking. Never doubt yourself for one minute because you have an admirable strength that no one else can relate too.

I love you schwester! Keep your head up! Everything is turning around for you... as they do just remember that God's timing is the best timing so just pray & be patient! Also never sell yourself short, at this point you don't need a fat bank account or a man or anything else to define you. Work on you and everything else will fall into place!

See you soon girl!

XOXO,

Brooke

Cooking For Two!

Dear Meagan,

Considering you are now officially living on your own with your roomie Karen, I thought it would be appropriate to write about cooking for two :)  As I always say I am no expert but hope what I've learned over the last couple years can help!

So I almost always cook for 4-6, so we have leftovers... that way there is extra for lunches or dinner later that week. I know sometimes you don't love leftovers but you gotta get over that because full out cooking twice a day is worse than eating leftovers in my opinion lol.

Here are are a couple of my FAVORITE easy recipes! They also use rotisserie chickens which is nice because it saves you a step in cooking the chicken!

 FRENCH CHICKEN BROCCOLI SUPREME

Ingredients:

  1 – lb. fresh broccoli Break in pieces, and steam for 2 minutes.
3 cups cooked chicken breasts  – Break up in small pieces
3 cups Grated Cheddar Cheese divided
2 tubes Ritz Crackers
1  stick melted butter
1 tablespoon poppy seeds

  SAUCE:
1/3 cup Butter- melted
1/4 cups Cornstarch, dissolved in 1/2 cup COLD Water
1/3 cup Chicken Broth
1/4 tsp. Salt
1/4 tsp Pepper
2 Cups Milk
1 1/2 cups of the above Cheddar Cheese

 Directions:

In greased 13×9 pan, layer the broccoli and chicken, then set aside. In saucepan over medium heat, combine the melted butter, cornstarch dissolved in water, chicken broth, seasonings, and milk. Stir well, and continue stirring until sauce has thickened. Turn heat down to low, and add 1- 1/2 cups grated cheddar cheese. Stir until melted. Pour over the chicken and broccoli. Top with 1- 1/2 cups grated cheddar cheese.
Melt the butter, and add the poppy seeds, and stir well. Crush Ritz crackers in large zip-lock bag with a rolling pin. Don’t crush too small. Add crumbs to the melted butter. Sprinkle crumbs over the top of the grated cheese.
Bake uncovered at 350 degrees for about 30 minutes, or until hot & bubbly.




Easy 'Chicken Pot Pie'

Ingredients:
1 can of refrigerated biscuits
1 can of cream of mushroom soup
1 10 oz bag of frozen 'pot pie' veggies  (peas, carrots, green beans, etc)
1 rotisserie chicken

Preheat oven to 350 degrees
Grease 13x9 baking pan
Mix together soup, frozen veggies, and 2 cups of shredded rotisserie chicken meat
Add salt and pepper to taste
Place biscuits in one even layer on top of mixture
Bake 30 minutes
Let Cool



Hope you get to try and enjoy both of these! Love you! So great to see you on Easter :) Good times!

XOXO,

Brooke