New Books Make Me Happy

I was recently introduced to Bared To You:A Crossfire Novel by Sylvia Day.  I really enjoyed the love story.  There are some similarities to Fifty Shades of Grey.  There is a bachelor that is filthy rich and very successful in his own company.  He also has some emotional issues that cause him to distance himself from relationships.  Then you have the young girl that is just starting out in the "real world" after college.  The difference is that she too has some emotional issues that she is also dealing with. 

I LOVED Fifty Shades of Grey Trilogy!  I also really liked Bared To You, but I do not think the books go hand in hand.  I think that Sylvia Day's language tends to be a little more vulgar than EL James.  I still really enjoyed the book, there were just a few words that caught me by surprise. If you have not read either of these books, I strongly recommend.  The love stories are fun and exciting.

Reflected in You is the second book of the Crossfire Novels and it is out today for Kindle users!!!!  The second book comes out in paperback October 23rd.  That is another thing that I love about having a Kindle!!  You get titles released earlier!!!  I cannot wait to start reading it!!! Let me know what you think!!

<3 Ashley

Salsa Chicken

I threw this Salsa Chicken together as a variation of something my mother in law made once.  This is super easy with minimal ingredients. 

You will need:
Chicken breasts
Salsa
Cheese blend (I used Monterey Jack and Colby)
Rice

Set your oven to 350. Now, my boys are very picky eaters.  So when I made this I divided up my 9x13 inch pan with heavy duty tin foil.  I used two sheets to create pans within the pan instead of using two pans.  After you place the chicken in the baking dish, pour a generous amount of salsa over your chicken breasts.  For the chicken for my boys, I just seasoned with some seasoning salt.

Cover your pan with foil and bake covered for 25min.  Then remove the tin foil and continue to bake another 25min.  About 5 min before the chicken is done sprinkle with cheese.



Continue baking until cheese is melted.  While your chicken is in the last 15-20min of baking, start your rice.  I prefer brown rice, but you could also use white rice.  I also added a side of green beans, but you could use any vegetable or add a salad.

See...super easy and super yummy!!!  My husband and I got a meal with a little more flavor, while the kiddos got their version.  Hope you enjoy!!

 

<3 Ashley

One HOT Summer!

I don't know about you, but I cannot believe how HOT this Summer has been.  Even the Midwest got super hot! The fam and I ended staying inside a lot!  Since it is now September, I thought we would get some relief...no such luck! :/  While some of your areas may be cooling down, this past week for us has been another hot one.  I am going to give you just a couple of tips I have learned over the past year to help beat the heat. Since some of you may be lucky enough to have a cool down, you may want to save these tips for next Summer.

First let me say this, the heat is no joke!  Your body can dehydrate faster than you would ever think.  It is important to know how your body reacts to heat.  I learned in high school that I dehydrate very quickly.  I was laying out on the beach with a friend, sipping on a sports drink, but not really drinking much.  When we decided to call it quits and head to lunch, I blacked out on the way to the bathroom.  NO FUN!!  Unfortunately, my 6 yr old has the same problem.  He hasn't blacked out like me, but he has gotten an upset stomach and had a couple of the symptoms of being dehydrated.  Educate yourself on all the symptoms of dehydration.  If dehydration gets bad enough, you may need medical attention.  Some symptoms are sleepiness, thirst, headache, dizziness.  Click here for a full list of symptoms.  And don't forget, it is up to YOU to hydrate your kids...they wont ask for water in anticipation of going out to play!!!

If you know that you or your kids are going to be outside for a long time, prepare for it!  The day before is the time to start, especially for extreme heat.  Make sure you are getting in more than 64oz of water.  Your next step, about 2 hours before your activity starts,  you want to drink at least 24oz of water.  Then about 30min before the activity drink another 8oz of water.  Drink plenty of water during the activity, and I always give my little guy a sports drink after. 

This may seem like a lot, especially for your kids, but it works!  Anthony had a baseball practice and it was 95 degrees out and he got sick because he didn't drink as much as I thought he did. Since then, I measured out how much water his water bottle held and made sure he gets that water in before activity.  I mean, I stay on him until that water is all gone!! He had his first baseball game in 102 degrees and he was hot, but he made it through the game without feeling sick at all! SCORE! :)  If you have a kiddo that doesn't care for water (like my 4yr old), try getting them a fun water bottle.  I got my boys Spiderman water bottles like the one you can see here. 



Another thing we do when in the heat, is to wet a washcloth and stick it in the freezer, inside a plastic baggy about an hour before we leave.  We keep the cloth in a cooler, but freezing it a little before allows it to stay that much colder, longer.  Whenever the boys get too hot, or Anthony has a break we put the washcloth on the back of his neck.  This seems to help A TON! 







When we lived in St. Louis we read about this tip to cool your wrists.  So either take ice or running ice cold water and keep it on your wrists for 10 seconds (one one thousand...two one thousand...).  This is supposed to drop your body temperature 10 degrees.  We do this a lot with my 4yr old because he doesn't like the washcloth on his neck.  So we use this ice pack, we got ours from Walgreens...



We also picked up this ice pack...

I like this because if there is an injury, at home or while you are out, there is more coverage than the stiff brick ice pack above.  You can also lay it over the top of your head for a quick cool down. :) You can find something similar here.  I also like the flexibility so that you can line the inside of your cooler with them.  Using ice cubes in plastic storage bags can be very messy, this saves on that. :)

A few other tips:
~stay in as much shade as possible (duh! I know ;))
~don't where tight fitting clothing
~don't forget the sun block!!!
~wear a hat to help keep the sun off your face
~grab a mini, battery powered fan
~pour ice water on your neck and/or hair/head
~avoid carbonated beverages
~high-protein foods, spicy foods and "diuretic foods" should be avoided

I hope these tips help you beat the heat!  What tips do you have?!

 

<3 Ashley

Wedding Memories

After our wedding, I knew that I wanted to preserve my bouquet, hubbs boutineer and my keepsake garter.  I also knew that I didn't want to put it in a box to be forgotten.  So when we got home from the family vacation we took after the wedding I got the wheels turning to figure out what to do with them. (We took a honeymoon later.  We wanted to make the most of spending time with my dad so my side of the family all went to Orlando for a week. Read my About Me for a little more info.) Randomly I got the idea to put them in a shadow box, so that's what I did. :)

Because everything was last minute, (again, check out my About Me) we opted to have our 25 guests be our photographers.  The result was a lot of fun pictures, but not many "posed" pictures.  So the picture I used here is my favorite picture of me and the hubbs right after the ceremony.  I believe I got the shadow box from Michael's.  This particular shadow box had a felt back, some just have the hard backing.  I attached the photo and wedding program with velcro strips. I attached both sets of flowers and the keepsake garter with straight pins.

We didn't have wedding invitations made up.  If we had I would have used that instead of the wedding program.  I added the garter since I thought we were a little old to have it hanging from our rearview mirror. ;)  I LOVE this box!  (Not to toot my own horn, beep beep!)  I have it hanging in my bedroom and I enjoy looking at the picture and remembering that moment.  I did take a picture with the glass on, but since I am not a photographer it didn't turn out the best.  Here it is anyway...

 

I hope this inspires you to create your own variation!

 

<3 Ashley



Vanishing Banana Bread

I call this "Vanishing Banana Bread" because as soon as you cut into it, it vanishes! :)  My mom gave me this recipe and every time I make it, I get lots of compliments. It is DELICIOUS!! Keep in mind as you read that when I explain the instructions, I am keeping an inexperienced baker in mind.  So some of you who are a little more experienced may skim over some of the instructions.

The ingredients:
1 cup margarine (I used butter)
2 cups sugar
3 eggs
3 cups flour
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. salt
1/4 cup sour cream (yes, SOUR cream...I think it's what makes the bread "vanish")
3 ripe bananas (mashed)
1 tsp. vanilla
1 cup chopped walnuts (optional)

I always start out by getting all the ingredients ready.  Take out the margarine/butter and eggs.  If you are using butter let it sit at room temperature for about 30min.  I let my eggs sit out with the butter.   Sift all dry ingredients together, set aside.  Mash bananas...I used a potato masher, you can use a fork or anything else that works for you...Then preheat oven to 325...

Cream butter and sugar together.  Start by beating your butter until smooth.  Add sugar and beat until fluffy. (pictured left) Then add eggs one at a time, mixing well after each. (pictured right)

It is important to scrape sides and bottom through out mixing so everything gets mixed real well.  Add dry ingredients (that you mixed together earlier)gradually, alternating with the sour cream.

Add mashed bananas (the white in there is left over sour cream from my spatula)and vanilla... Mix well...If you are using walnuts, add in here.  I did not use nuts.



Grease loaf pans.  You can use two loaf pans, or I used one 5x9 loaf pan and 3 mini loaf pans (perfect for gifts). Fill about half way full...

 





Bake at 325 for about 1hour (if using two 5x9 loaf pans).  I baked all 4 pans together.  I took the mini pans out after about 35min. (When the toothpick inserted in the center of the loaf comes out clean.)  I moved the larger pan to the middle and let it bake for another 10-12 min, again testing with a toothpick. Let loaves cool for about 10-15min in pan on a rack before getting out of the pans.

Let them cool before slicing and enjoy!

This is one of the mini loaves.

 

I hope you all enjoy this recipe as much as we all do!  Let me know what you think!

 

<3 Ashley





Crockpot Roast

I saw a pin on Pinterest for this roast.  When I went to click on it, the link was broken.  The ingredients were listed in the picture, so I went ahead and made it.  Let me tell you, my husband said it was GOOD!!  For those of you who may know my husband, this is huge.  The hubbs doesn't get excited about food the way that I do.  When I make something it is usually "fine."  After receiving a "fine" we usually categorize the food by "should I make it again" or "lose the recipe."  The hubbs very much appreciates the meal, he just doesn't take a bite and then say"OMG this is good!!"  Any hoo, down to the meal.  I added mashed potatoes and corn as sides because I know my boys will eat them.  You could also add some red potatoes and carrots.

The ingredients:
Any kind of roast.  I usually go for something not too fatty and not too big since my boys don't eat a lot and I usually just want enough leftovers for the hubbs to take some to work the next day. You will also need...

Mix all three packets into 1/2 cup of water...

Pour over roast in crockpot and cook on low for 8-10hrs.

Man, the house smelled good.  Add your sides and you are good to go.  Sometimes you just need some good old meat and potatoes! Ladle some au jus (the juice left over from the cooking) over the top of the meat after you plate.  Yummmm! 

 

 

It was a little tangy for the boys.  I think next time I might try the regular Italian dressing instead of the zesty Italian dressing. 

 

I hope you enjoy!!

 

<3 Ashley





Cheesy Broccoli Chicken...Yummmm!

I saw this recipe on Pinterest and knew I had to try it.  Now, my boys are very picky eaters!  Anthony wont eat anything that is cooked all together, ie. casseroles.  So when I make things like this I usually cook them something separate.  Last night they got to eat their Tyson Chicken Nuggets while my hubbs and I got to eat the yummy chicken.

This recipe is super easy to throw together and leave to cook.  We went to a baseball game last night, so I was able to throw the packets together and finish getting ready to leave while they cooked. 

So, here is what you will need...

1 package stuffing mix; chicken flavor
1 1/4 cups Water
4 Boneless skinless chicken breasts
4 cups broccoli florets
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
4 slices cooked bacon; crumbled
4 tbsp ranch dressing divided
pre-heat oven to 400

Directions:
~Mix water and stuffing mix, then divide up between the 4 foils.
~Place chicken breasts on top of stuffing mix
~place 1 cup of broccoli on top of each chicken breast
~sprinkle 1/4 of cheese over each chicken
~crumble one slice of bacon over each chicken
~drizzle 1 Tbsp ranch dressing over each chicken
~ Bring sides of foil up to meet each other, then fold.  Make sure you leave a little room in the top for circulation.  Don't forget to fold the sides up.
~Put in 400 degree oven and bake for 35-40min.
~Let sit for about 5 min when finished and be careful when you open for any steam that may come out.

It took me about 15min to throw everything together in the packets.  The result is so yummy!  The nice thing about the kids not wanting to eat stuff like this is that the hubbs and I get leftovers the next day for lunch. :)

The nice thing about this recipe is that you can add or subtract based on how many chicken breasts you want to make.  If you don't want the leftovers and are cooking for 2, you can just cut the rest of the ingredients in half.  I think next time I will put more broccoli, you can never have too many veggies. ;)

Some things you can do to make a "lighter version."  (I will try this next time.  I had all theses ingredients in my fridge already and wanted to use up what I had.)
~use a light dressing or no dressing at all
~use reduced fat cheddar
~use turkey bacon

I hope you are inspired to try this recipe too. 

<3 Ashley

Spiderman Cake

It has been a while since I have posted.  I have had a horrible cold that resulted in me bruising my ribs from coughing.  I haven't been able to do much, including house work. :/  Luckily for me I have an amazing husband that has taken over taking care of the house, the kids and me. :)  Who knew that bruising your ribs could be so painful?!

Pain aside, I had to get ready for my son to turn 6.  He requested a Spiderman birthday cake.  I wasn't too excited because I am NOT an artist.  My best art work in school consisted of stick figures.  But I try to make my boys happy, so I wasn't going to say no.  I think because I was under the weather and had the issue with my ribs, this cake gave me a little more trouble than it normally would have.  I had to run out the day of his birthday to get red frosting because mine went pink and wouldn't go red.  That is why I always do their cakes the day before! You never know what could go wrong. Now on to the cake...

Like his brother, Anthony requested a chocolate cake.  For my chocolate cake recipe click here.  I am looking forward to making something other than chocolate cake, because it seems to be all that I am making lately!!  But it is a really good recipe so it is ok! ;)  I used my frosting recipe for the blue frosting.  Click here for the recipe.  For the yellow, red and black frosting I used Wilton products.  You can click each color to see what I used.  I decided to buy the black frosting this time because it takes a lot of coloring and mixing to get true black.  I didn't think I had the strength to be doing that much mixing.  Because I knew I was doing such a small amount of yellow I decided to purchase that as well.  The red was the only one I wasn't planning on purchasing.  If you are planning on purchasing any frosting for decorating, I recommend the Wilton tubes, not the one in the can.  When I went to the store they didn't have the red in the tube so I was stuck.  The one in the can worked well for the bottom ribbon the cake, just not for the top.  Because it is in the can it comes out a little fast and makes bigger stars than I would have liked.  I chose to stick with star tipping because I like the visual affect. 

I put the cake on a turned over cookie sheet with tin foil...



I started with a 9x13 and frosted the whole thing blue.  I then used the black frosting with a round #4 tip attached with a coupler to do the outline of the Spiderman face (did I mention I am not an artist?!).  I then used the yellow frosting and star tip #16 attached with a coupler to fill in the eyes.  If you click on any of the items you can see what I used.

To fill in the face I used the red frosting and the star tip that was provided.  I also used the provided star tip to do the ribbons on the bottom.  I used the yellow with the round #4 tip to do the writing on the cake.  The end result was....

And a happy 6 year old! :)  I hope you enjoy my recipes!  I also hope that my attempts at cake decorating will inspire you to try.  It is lots of fun (when you are not in pain), and the look on your kiddos face when you created something for them is so rewarding!!

Questions? Comments? I would love to hear from you!!

<3 Ashley

Getting ready for school to start

School is just around the corner for my kiddos and it is bittersweet.  I am so excited for them to get some time away from each other so they can appreciate each other more!!  BUT, I am going to have a hard time with Anthony going to school full time and Logan going to school at all!!  My babies are growing up too fast!

~anyway~

I knew that with school starting I needed to get them on a schedule.  They don't go to any kind of day care, so for the most part besides meal, the day is pretty much a free for all.  I have always been a fan of check lists (I get it from my mom...she loves checklists!)  I saw this checklist type clipboard on Pinterest, sadly when I clicked on the link it was spam.  So I really just had a picture to go off of.  Before you continue you should know that I am NOT a crafty person.  I just try to be.  I am not an artist (my sister got all of those genes).  And when I try this kind of stuff there is usually more than one flaw.  But this is what I came up with...

I did two clipboards for each of my kiddos.  One for the morning and one for the evening.  I also purchased a small digital clock to put in the bathroom.  Click here to see one similar.  The clock is so that I can tell them what time they need to be done in the bathroom by.  We also have the alarm set for when they need to start their bed time routine.  They do tend to argue less when the alarm goes off or if they get to keep track of the time on their own.  To start you will need these...

I got this vinyl table cloth from Walmart for like $5 that I use whenever I paint.  I wanted the traditional clipboard, but you could try plastic.  I got mine from Staples because I swear no one carried plain clipboards anymore ($2.29 for 1...I got a set of 3 for $4.49 and then 1 additional).  The Mod Podge and acrylic paint I had from a previous project.  Make sure you have a fresh foam brush.  I thought mine was new but it was a little flimsy making application a little difficult.  Paint pen, I used black.  Scrap book paper for the bottom ($0.16).  Magnet squares, you will need 10 per board ($3.49for 40).  I used small round magnets ($6.99 for 60) and foam stickers ($2.99) to make the star magnets.  Minus the clipboards, I got the rest of the supplies from Michael's.  Look online and in your local paper for coupons, you can get anywhere from 25% off purchase to 40% off an item.
First, Paint your clipboard.  After I started I decided to add some painter's tape around the top.

Use old newspaper or magazine pages to put your paint on.  This is the first coat.  You will need at least two coats of paint.  Decide what you want your board to have listed on it.  After the paint dried I marked off every inch up to 6 inches from the bottom of the clip.

Then, very lightly with a pencil I drew a line across at each inch 6.5 inches across.

Then, I wrote the list with pencil to make sure my spacing was OK before I wrote over the pencil with a paint pen.

I then cut 3 inches of scrapbook paper per board.  I did a very thin layer of mod podge to seal the paint and writing and laid the paper at the bottom if the last item on the list.

Let that sit for about 10min and then apply another thin layer of the mod podge all over the board including over the paper.  Be very careful here because the paper can wrinkle or bubble if there is 









too much mod podge.  I had to smooth them out a couple of times, and sadly there are still a few. Be prepared to get glue fingers here! ;)  Let the last coat dry for about 15min.  Next up is making the magnets.  So take the round magnets and the foam stickers and put them together. :)  The boys had fun helping me with this part.

Then take the square magnets with adhesive on them and put five on the bottom ( or however many you may need) and one next to each task.



As my peanuts accomplish a task they can move a star next to it.  Logan is not old enough to have "homework" yet, but then I don't have to make another one when he is.  ;)...I did consider putting times on the one for the morning but decided against it for when schedules may change.  I do plan on putting some ribbon through the hole on the clipboard and hang them.  This project did take me about 2hrs.  However, I was making 4 of them and had to figure out the best way for me to do it.  If you follow these steps, it shouldn't take you as long.

To make it a little more interesting for the boys my hubbs and I decided to add a little incentive.  Every time the boys do all 5 tasks on a clipboard they get a "stick" or a craft stick. After receiving 10 sticks they have a choice of picking a dinner for the following week or trading them in for a red stick.  After earning 3 red sticks they get to pick a restaurant to eat at of their choice.  You should know that dinner time in my house is a struggle.  I want a balanced meal and they would prefer just a grilled cheese sandwich  "with nothing else please!!"  So, they love picking what is for dinner.  They love to eat at "restaurants" and we don't do it often.   Try to come up with something fun for your kiddos! 

Let me know what fun things you add to this project!

<3 Ashley

If you like spicy...

One of my good friends had me and my family over for dinner one night and made this super yummy dish.  I find this dish very spicy, but keep in mind every one's level of spicy is different.  Because I find it so spicy I decided to only use about half the red pepper it calls for.  Also, the nice thing is that the recipe doesn't call for any protein, so you could add chicken or shrimp (I tried shrimp this time...yummy!!!).

Linguine with Spicy Tomato Cream Sauce

8oz Linguine Noodles

2 TBSP olive oil

1 tbsp minced onion

2 garlic cloves (I use the minced ones you get in a jar)

1 can diced tomatoes w/garlic & onion

1/4 cup fresh basil

1/2 tsp ground red pepper

1/2 cup whipping cream

salt and pepper to taste

~cook linguine noodles according to box

~heat olive oil in skillet, add garlic and onion, saute for a min

~add the rest of the ingredients.  Bring to boil.  Let boil for 5min.

NOTE: If you are going to add any kind of protein, do it here so all the flavors can cook together.

~Toss in the linguine and serve.

You can count on cook time being about 15min start to finish.  Now, because it is so spicy, my boys don't like it.  I usually just cook extra linguine and give them some noodles with Parmesan Cheese.  Add a salad and your meal is complete.

I hope you enjoy!

<3 Ashley