This year…

I want to relax more. Not worry about every single little thing. Smile more. Sleep more. Do less (if I want to). Do more (if I want to). Make weekly meal plans and (somewhat) stick to them. Deep clean my house and keep it clean. Move. Find out why I have a constant sinus infection. Spend more time with my nephew – I know that the “sweet, cuddly, little boy” time I have left with him is going way too fast. Spend more time with my husband. WITH him. Not in the house, not in a different room, but WITH HIM. Be more patient – with my husband and everyone else that requires my attention. Go back to California. Take an awesome trip to Atlanta. Spend girl time in Savannah. Spend more time with my friends. Eat out less, eat at home more. Be a nicer person. Read 36 books at a minimum. Make crafty things instead of just looking at them and thinking, “I could do that”. Go to Austin for a few days with Kevin. Spend time with my precious Booda – he is almost 10 years old and I want to get as many cuddles in with him as I can before he is no longer with us on earth. See my grandmothers and grandfather more often. Volunteer somewhere. Exercise 3-4 days a week, even if it only involves walking around the block. Find a yoga class that works with my budget and schedule. Prepare freezer meals. Make a quilt top – possibly do a whole quilt, but we’ll just see how that goes. Be happy with what I have. Realize that my problems are minute compared to the rest of the world.

French Onion Chicken

I could have sworn this was on the blog – I love this recipe! I was craving it today.

French Onion Chicken

4 chicken breasts (tonight I used 1.5 lbs chicken tenders – which is way too many, but I didn’t think about it)

1 cup Minute rice

1 stick margarine (or butter)

1 can Cream of Mushroom soup

1 can French Onion soup

1/2 can milk

Melt the margarine in a 9×13 pan as the oven preheats to 350. Once it is melted and the oven is preheated, pour the rice on top of the melted margarine and mix it together. Spread evenly across the bottom of the pan, even though it’s impossible to do so.

Place the chicken breasts on top of the rice. Mix together the cream of mushroom soup + 1/2 can milk. Pour over chicken. Pour the French Onion soup over that.

Bake at 350 for 40-50 minutes. Mine usually takes about 45.

SO good.

Trader Joe’s is coming to Texas!

(Not until next year, I don’t think, but STILL – I am so excited!)

When I was in California this summer, you know I had to stop at Trader Joe’s and buy a bunch of stuff. I ended up mailing home a 33 lb box. Holy crap. The 33 lbs does not include the crap we bought to snack on while we were IN California, either! At the Barnes & Noble in The Grove Los Angeles, I spotted a shelf full of Trader Joe’s cookbooks. I’d forgotten about them until now, but I added them to my Wish List board on Pinterest – I have to plan ahead and prepare a list for when my stores open here in Texas, you know.

I also found a few TJ related blogs – LOVE!

Cooking with Trader Joe’s

What’s Good at Trader Joe’s?

Trader Joes Recipes

 

Those of you that are TJ’s pros – which products are the must have products? I am already a huge fan of the Black Bean Dip, the Cilantro Salad Dressing, and the Salted Caramel Sauce.

The way we eat is definitely going to change once Trader Joe’s comes to town.

 

Oh man, I really suck.

Since my friends won’t send me their pictures from Pinterest Camp part 2, I’m just going to have to link to the best things we made from that weekend. I do have a few pictures, thanks to my sister, so I’ll use some of those too!

No-Sew Ruffled Tree Skirt

Pinterest version:

Source: mycrazylife-lauren.blogspot.com via Heather on Pinterest

My version:

Stacked Paper Christmas Tree

Pinterest version:

Source: lifestylecrafts.com via Heather on Pinterest

My version:

Candy Cane Wreath

Pinterest version:

Source: whipperberry.com via Heather on Pinterest

My version:

That’s about all I had time to make. That tree skirt took me about 8 hours total – looks great, but would I make one again? Hell no!

Here are a few pics of things the others made:

Fruit of the Spirit Pear Painting
Pinterest version:

Source: mango-watermelon-love.tumblr.com via Whitney on Pinterest

Our version:

Envelope Advent Calendar
Pinterest version:

Source: lifestylecrafts.com via Brittaney on Pinterest

Our versions:

Peppermint Wreaths
Pinterest versions:

Source: blowoutparty.com via Brittaney on Pinterest

Source: fudgeripple.blogspot.com via Brittaney on Pinterest

Our versions:

Yarn tree

Believe Banner

Assorted Wreaths

Paper Dot Christmas Tree

Button Christmas Tree (will go in a frame)

All of our loot (we left out multiples – as in, they made 4 peppermint wreaths, 3 pear paintings, etc.)

The next one is tentatively planned for late January/early February! Can’t wait!

Pumpkin Dip + Stacy’s Gingerbread Pita Chips = heaven

My sister and I were at Sam’s for a cheap lunch and pretzel (have you HAD their pretzels at the snack bar?), and I found Stacy’s Gingerbread Pita Chips and knew I had to get them. Of course, since we were at Sam’s, the bag is huge and I will never finish it. Now that I had Gingerbread pita chips, I had to make pumpkin dip to go with them. That’s logical, right?

Since Pinterest doesn’t have an Android app (hint hint), I had to kind of improvise based on what little information we could find about pumpkin dip while on the go. The result is excellent, but I’m pretty sure we combined three different pumpkin dip recipes and made our own.

Pumpkin Pie Dip

1 small can pumpkin (after making it, I think  you could use the large can if you wanted more pumpkin flavor)

1 brick cream cheese, softened

16 oz. Cool Whip or generic equivalent (I went name brand this time!)

1 box vanilla pudding mix (I used the large box)

3/4 cup powdered sugar

Cinnamon, to taste

Pumpkin Pie Spice, to taste (or you could use Penzey’s Baking Spice if you wanted – have you been to that awesome store?)

Mix everything with a mixer (I used a Kitchenaid stand mixer and it makes a full bowl). Chill for a couple of hours.

That’s it. It is SO good and makes a ton – I took it to work and one lady suggested making pie crust strips to dip in it. I just had a thought that it would be really good spread on pumpkin or banana bread or a bagel.

 

Crock Pot Potato Soup

I’m sure I pinned this on Pinterest, but my sister made it first, so I had to copy her. I’m glad I did, because this stuff is good!

Crock Pot Potato Soup – via Pearls, Handcuffs, and Happy Hour 

30 oz. bag frozen shredded hash brown potatoes

3 (14 oz) cans chicken broth

1 can cream of chicken soup

1/2 cup onion, chopped (I used frozen because I’m lazy like that)

Diced ham (this was all my idea – husband likes ham)

1/4 tsp. ground pepper

1 brick cream cheese (don’t use fat free, it won’t melt)

Combine everything except the cream cheese in the crock pot. Heat on LOW 6-8 hours. About an hour before serving, cut up the cream cheese and stir into the soup. Once it has melted, serve.

We put shredded cheese on ours, because we love cheese.

It’s excellent! Can’t wait to have it for lunch tomorrow!

 

 

 

Cheesy Nutty Bread (what a name, right?)

I don’t normally pick up samples at the grocery store that are left unattended (I’m weird like that), but the other day at Kroger this caught my eye and I made an exception. Plus, my nephew was with me and any opportunity I have to get that kid to eat something besides fruit snacks is a win. This was sitting out on a cart (fresh out of the oven!), bread cut up into bite size pieces in a little plastic jello shot cup, copies of the recipe sitting out for freaks like me to take. Bonus – Logan loved it and wanted to go back and get another piece. What?!

We each got a piece of the bread. SO good. It was sweet, but cheesy. And nutty. Hence the name. It was an odd combination, but it worked! I’ve been thinking about it since Sunday, so I guess I’ll have to make it this weekend.

Cheesy Nutty Bread

1 cup (4 oz) Hennings Yellow Cheddar Cheese (I would assume any cheddar cheese would work, this was set up by the “cheese shop”)

3 cups flour

1 cup sugar

4 tsp. baking powder

1 tsp. salt

1 egg

1 2/3 cups milk

1/4 cup cooking oil

3/4 cup chopped nuts

Preheat oven to 350.

In mixing bowl, stir flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt together.

In another bowl, mix egg, milk, and oil. Add to dry ingredients.

In small bowl, combine cheese and nuts. Mix evenly. Add to other ingredients.

Grease bread pan (9x5x3). Pour ingredients in and smooth surface.

Bake in oven for 1-1 1/4 hours. Cool in pan for 10 minutes. Remove from pan and cool on rack.

Serve hot, or wrap and store overnight.

Simple Macaroni and Beef with Cheese – basically, homemade Hamburger Helper.

I stole this recipe from my sister, who stole it from Pinterest, who stole it from Ruhlman.com. Follow me? My sister made it, said it was good, so of course I have to copy her. I usually let her be the guinea pig.

I made my husband (the chef in the house) make it. I didn’t do anything but buy the ingredients and print out the recipe. Life is tough. Today, I’ve been ruling the house from my bed, because I can. It’s my day off, and I’m thinking about demanding a re-do, because I sure do like quiet on my days off and I haven’t gotten that today. My husband is full of coughs and mucus and obnoxious noises, so I don’t feel like I got my money’s worth on my precious day off. This is why we both prefer to have separate days off from work. Sad, but true.

He made some changes (as always) and also made a shortcut. I’ll type out the original version first and then add his notes. Kids will like this. I liked it, but next time we’ll he’ll add more spices.

Simple Macaroni and Beef with Cheese

1 large onion, diced (he used half)

1 Tbsp. canola oil

Salt to taste

Optional seasonings: black pepper, oregano, cumin, coriander, chopped garlic, hot smoked paprika, chili powder – whatever you’re in the mood for.

28 oz. can whole tomatoes, pureed in the can with a hand blender or in a blender (why couldn’t you just buy diced? I don’t know. Next time.)

2 lbs. lean ground beef

1 box elbow macaroni

1 cup each grated cheddar and mozzarella cheeses

Sweat the onions in the oil with a three-fingered pinch of salt. Add the beef and cook it, breaking it up as you do. Add another three-fingered pinch of salt or two, along with any dry seasonings you want. Add the tomatoes and any fresh seasonings you may be using, bring to a simmer, then reduce the heat to low and cook for an hour.

Cook the macaroni in boiling water until it is half done. Drain it and add it to the tomatoes. (We used the whole box). Stir it into the sauce. Season to taste. Cover. When it is cooled and the pasta has absorbed the tomato juices, transfer it to a large baking dish (13×9) and cover it with foil. It can sit out for several hours like this, be refrigerated up to two days, or frozen for a few weeks.

Bake it in a 400 degree oven until it’s piping hot (about 45 minutes if it is cold to room temperature). Just before you’re ready to eat, remove the foil, cover macaroni with cheese and broil till it looks beautiful (as beautiful as meat and cheese and pasta can be, I suppose).
Kevin’s notes:

I didn’t add oil.

Just sweat onions, add beef and a lot of salt. Brown, drain, and add pureed tomatoes. Simmer for 30 minutes, add garlic powder. Simmer more while boiling noodles, drain noodles, and add to beef. Simmer for 10 minutes. Add bags of cheese on top of mixture in 13×9, broil for 7 minutes.

See, we were out of foil tonight and neither one of us wanted to go to the store for it. Adapt, people, adapt. Broiling saves the day.

It was really good comfort food, which is what I needed tonight because of the noise factor in my house. I hate sickness, especially other people’s sicknesses. Especially when it’s loud and disgusting.

Angry Bird? Check.

My lovely 4 year old nephew decided that he wanted to be the “black bomb bird” from his beloved Angry Birds game. My sister and I talked about it for weeks, trying to figure out how to make a round costume that looked decent and was not too hot (we do live in Texas, after all, and it’s usually warm on Halloween). No dice.

Finally, I suggested just getting a black shirt/sweatshirt, black pants/leggings, and a black hat and we could go from there. I’m not the MOST creative person, but I can sure try!

First, I printed out a couple of pictures of the black Angry Bird to use for reference. One looked a lot meaner than the other, but we let Logan pick which one he liked the best – we ended up using the eyes from the not-so-angry bird, and the beak from the very-angry-bird. We compromise in my family.

I freehanded the shapes (eyebrows, eyeballs, eyebags – I can’t think of a better way to explain those!) onto paper so we could lay it out and make sure we liked the size of the design. We cut out the shapes, laid out the face, and labelled them with the color felt we needed to cut them out of.

Once we had the proportions the way we wanted them, we traced them onto felt and cut them out. We did run into a problem – we needed gray felt and didn’t have any. I don’t know that I have ever seen light gray felt anyway – so we were resourceful and cut up one of my brother-in-law’s old gray t-shirts! Worked like a charm.

At first I thought I would handstitch the pieces onto the sweatshirt, but then I decided that was a time suck, so I brought my handy dandy Stitch Witch at the last minute. SO glad I did, because I forgot how much I hate to stitch stuff by hand.

I put the eyes together with the Stitch Witch, then used the Stitch Witch to attach them to the sweatshirt. I stuck the beak on with Stitch Witch as well. I’m not saying this costume will be one to pass down to future children, but it will at least last until Halloween is over!

For the hat – my sister bought a solid black fleece hat with a pom-pom of sorts on top. I was at a loss trying to figure out how to make a felt “explosion” on the top of the hat. Then I remembered making all those felt flowers for my yarn wreath – DUH! I basically made a huge felt flower and sewed it onto the top, around the black pom-pom. It worked perfectly!

He loved it! He was so excited when we showed him the finished product, which was enough for me. Whatever makes him happy, I am glad to do it. Isn’t that what aunts are for?!

He's not pissed, he's practicing his "ANGRY BIRD" look! This was obviously pre-leggings.

So – the whole thing cost less than $20. It took less than an hour. It’s not the greatest, most elaborate costume we’ll see, but I’m pretty proud of it!

Sweatshirt – $5

Leggings – $5  (they were in the GIRLS section, but he doesn’t have to know that!)

Hat – $5

Felt – $3.97

Stitch Witch – I already had, but it’s less than $5

This post is part of Get Your Craft on Tuesday at Today’s Creative Blog!

LOVE! And just for good measure, and because I love him so much – this is the reason I would give my life for that kid.

 

 

Is it June yet?

A few months ago, my friend Brittaney (who STILL hasn’t put anything on her blog) told me about Haven Conference. It’s a DIY/Blogging conference that will be held in June 2012 in Atlanta, and she thought we needed to go.

We got a group together, bought tickets, and we’re going. They just announced some of the speakers and the sessions yesterday, and I am so excited now! (Like I wasn’t before).

One of the girls (Creative Kristi) going to Haven put together a Linky party for Haven attendees – I feel a little out of my league joining these women (and men) but I’m doing it anyway!

Haven Attendees Links   

There are still a few tickets left, so if you think you might want to go next year – get one!